Write a story in which each paragraph begins or ends (or both!) with the same sentence.

Posted in Fiction on Feb 17, 2023

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✍️ 77 stories

“Dale Was Adamant” by Wally Schmidt

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #186

CW: mentions of miscarriage and suicide Dale was adamant. Adamant that chocolate chips belonged in banana bread, that health care should be universal, and that rap music is an acquired taste. He thought people who grew up with grandparents close-by had a deeper sense of security than those who didn’t, and that saying hello to people you passed, whether you knew them or not, was the foundation of civilization. Dale was adamant. Adamant that I was the most beautiful girl he had ever been with and that he wanted to share his future with me. H...

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“The Other Suicide Note” by Thom With An H

Submitted to Contest #186

Please don’t do it.Don’t do it because I am your father, and I am supposed to protect you. When your mother first told me she was pregnant, I quit smoking. I quit that very day. I needed to live a long life. I needed to provide a home where you would live and clothes you would wear and food you would eat. I needed to be there to teach you how to throw a baseball, to fish, to shave. I needed to be there to listen and to give advice and to hug. Don’t do it because I have so much more love to give, so many more stories to tell, so man...

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“Long Chapters, Short Story” by Melony Beard

Submitted to Contest #186

The days felt long. The end of the first chapter of her life began at the ripe age of seventeen. She met a boy. She knew this was it because she could see her future in his eighteen year old eyes. However after joining the Army, they sent him far away. She couldn't go. She prayed, she begged and she cried thousands of tears. She pleaded with God to bring him safely back to her. She impatiently waited for each passionate love letter to arrive in the mail. She kept each letter and pored over each word countless times. The days were torturously...

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“Different Today” by Zack Powell

Submitted to Contest #186

She's different today, my human. She shed her fur. Yesterday it was blonde and it flowed down her back like water from a fire hydrant and it smelled like strawberries when I nuzzled it. Today it's gone. I shed mine too sometimes, like when the weather gets too hot outside, or when I've gone too many days without being walked. Sometimes it just happens on its own. Maybe that's true for her too, my human. Maybe she woke up today and her fur spilled out over her pillow and left her with the too-short table scraps she has now. Maybe it just happ...

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“Good Boy” by Wendy Rogers

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #186

Just a little longer. My chin on the couch. I’m so tired. Everything hurt. When He touched my face it felt better. He brushed the hair from my eyes. Raising my head a little I licked His hand. It smelled like the BEACH. We used to go there together. My head would be out the window, and I could smell the whole world. At the BEACH, He would open the door and let me run. I ran and ran. My paws felt light. He threw the ball for me, over and over. I would bring it back, it was salty. And He would throw it again. He would sit on His blan...

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“Why Do You Write?” by Sophia Gavasheli

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #186

Why do you write? The question bounces around in your brain, ricocheting off memories, imaginings, ideas, aches, desires, anxieties, and dreams, evading answers. It’s a question asked by colleges considering whether to accept you into their creative writing program. A question asked by professors trying to get your creative juices flowing. By parents worrying about how you’re paying your bills. By yourself wondering what the hell you’re doing with your life. Why do you write? Usually, you answer questions by observing them like a lion...

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“Ever since that day, nothing had been the same.” by Mason Smith

Submitted to Contest #186

Ever since that day, nothing had been the same. I saw nothing the same, felt things dully, every sound muffled beyond my ears. As if I were underwater. I still saw you, not really though. I dreamed of you and I stared for hours at our old texts, but there was no bringing you back. I could still feel the smoke choking my lungs, making me fall to my knees as I wept. Oh, how I'd wept. But there was nothing I could do... You always knew I hated that feeling of helplessness, that loss of control. Always knew I couldn’t stand it- but that day ther...

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“Waves” by Michelle Oliver

Submitted to Contest #186

Waves crashed and churned. They made a lilting kind of sound that lapped at our boat, leaving us gently comforted in their embrace. We were safe here, secure as a baby in our mother’s arms. This was Papa’s lifelong dream, to sail to the Bahamas with his family. I hadn’t ever thought about doing it, but since we started it had seemed to work out ok. Papa had assured me it was safe, soothing my fears, so I knew it was going to be fine. I was not going to die.Waves crashed and churned. All night long, the sea rocked us to sleep and lulled ...

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“It is not my fault!” by Emanuel Diaz

Submitted to Contest #186

"It is not my fault, I swear. I was merely seeking knowledge and power, just like any other magician. When I found the Necronomicon, I thought I had struck gold. But the secrets I learned from that eldritch tome were far beyond anything I could have imagined. The power I possessed was incredible, but it came with a cost. But it is not my fault It is not my fault that Hastur, the King In Yellow, appeared to me. He whispered promises of even greater power, and I couldn't resist. I was so desperate to gain more power that I willingly let...

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“Our Just Deserves?” by Laurel Hanson

Submitted to Contest #186

“I want it!” My mom won’t let me get any candy because she says I’ll get hyper in the movie, but I won’t. I’ll eat my gummy bears and M&Ms one-by-one, so I don’t get sick. I will too be good, I said. Other kids are filling little sacks from the big glass tubes of candy. It makes a happy sound falling in the trays. The other kids have piles of color in their hands and are laughing. I bet they didn’t have to promise to be good. Mom said maybe after the movie. If I’m good. But she’s lying. I know that maybe means never. I wan...

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“It Only Takes a Moment” by Corvin Scott

Submitted to Contest #186

Content Warning: This story contains themes of existentialism, substance abuse, and mental health that may be triggering for some readers. New Message Subject: Goodbye Bella and Ryan Hey Bell and Ryan, it's been a while since I last messaged and I’m sorry for that. I’ve been busy with work and helping out at Tina’s. Before you think I’m three days in on another week-long bender—that this is another one of those messages—I’m not. I’ve actually been clean for nearly a week now. Impressive, right? So yeah, that’s not what this is. I...

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“Love Asphyxiation” by Alexandra Rodriguez

Submitted to Contest #186

Time slows when the grief hits. Grief, an unmistakable, poisoned blood that leaks from your heart and seeps into your bones. The kind of wound invisible to the naked eye; one that is ignored until you’re left to endure your own rotten soul in a pit of loneliness you dug for yourself. I don’t know how I got here. Time, a cruel master, who lives only to extend our suffering and minimize our enjoyment. We are given numbered days and told to treasure them. When our bad days outnumber our good ones, we are told to count our blessings. When o...

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“Hear My Heart Burst, Again (This is the End)” by Dhruv Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #186

This is the end. I know it in my heart, though I can hardly feel it beat within my chest. It murmurs softly against my ribcage, against soft folds of weathered skin. Where once vivacious strength and spirit had resided is now worn to destitution. Opening my eyes is hard; I remember a time when it was not - when the hues of the world were not so precious to me. I took it for granted, but of course that’s not too out of the ordinary, and now the colors I see in my mind's eye are tinged with yellowish decay. This is the end. “This is the e...

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“Uncle Fred” by Roxanne Blight

Submitted to Contest #186

My Uncle Fred was a shyster. He was a drunk, a womanizer, and a thief. But he was extremely charming to most people, although not to me. I’ve known since I was five years old that he was basically up to no good. When we would see him drive up our driveway my sister and I and would run around the house yelling “Hide the Booze, Hide the Booze”. My mom would put it in the washing machine, a place Fred would never think to look. This was our job, warning them of Fred’s arrival and we had fun doing it. Sometimes Fred would show up when no one w...

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“The Man Life Happened To” by J. D. Lair

Submitted to Contest #186

The bases were loaded and they were down by one point. It was the bottom of the ninth and little Joey was up to bat. The other parents groaned in the stands wishing anyone else stood at home plate, a kid who could actually hit the ball. The first two pitches whizzed by without him really noticing, both strikes according to the umpire. Little Joey knew he had to be ready for this next one and swing with all his might. He tightened his grip, adjusted his stance and forced his eyes to stay on the ball. Big swing! He spun and fell to the ground....

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Write a story in which each paragraph begins or ends (or both!) with the same sentence.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 77 stories

“Dale Was Adamant” by Wally Schmidt

“The Other Suicide Note” by Thom With An H

“Long Chapters, Short Story” by Melony Beard

“Different Today” by Zack Powell

“Good Boy” by Wendy Rogers

“Why Do You Write?” by Sophia Gavasheli

“Ever since that day, nothing had been the same.” by Mason Smith

“Waves” by Michelle Oliver

“It is not my fault!” by Emanuel Diaz

“Our Just Deserves?” by Laurel Hanson

“It Only Takes a Moment” by Corvin Scott

“Love Asphyxiation” by Alexandra Rodriguez

“Hear My Heart Burst, Again (This is the End)” by Dhruv Srivastava

“Uncle Fred” by Roxanne Blight

“The Man Life Happened To” by J. D. Lair

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story of fragments. Many options here: no verbs, sentence fragments, short sections, nothing but objects, etc. The fragments should relate to one another obliquely, hesitantly, subtly, ambiguously, preposterously, marvelously.

Write a story within a story within a story within a ...

Write a story that formally utilizes a mathematical sequence; e.g., the Fibonacci sequence could determine the number of words in each paragraph, or start with a number and work backwards. Make sure the formula is made clear, either within the story, or before or after it.

Write a story entirely of dialogue. Nothing but dialogue. No attributives (he said, she said, etc.). No descriptions of scenes or gestures or movements (unless these things are presented in the dialogue). Just words between quotation marks. Pure, beautiful, untainted dialogue.

Contest #186

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

481

Contest entries

142

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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