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.

Posted in Fiction on Feb 17, 2023

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✍️ 54 stories

“Four Crayons” by Nathaniel Miller

Submitted to Contest #186

FIRETRUCK REDeverything entranced, everything helpless firetrucks; nothing could stop the red.painful. not because it is bright, because it is dim. my eyes, not pained. my soul, my being, instead. the sun. dying. waving farewell. a ghost; no, an almost-ghost.my fate, too. not yet, i thought. will be, though, too soon. the sun, on the edge of what i knew. maybe the edge of what i knew. my fate, the sun’s; not the same, i realized. sun comes back. always. i wouldn’t, couldn’t.with its last rays, lights a burning fire. in me. kindling i di...

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“Hoping for the Sun to Shine” by J D

Submitted to Contest #186

Spring brings new beginnings. The girl, music in her heart, joy, pure and unbridled. Laughter and adventure. Discovery and growth. Days filled with sunshine and rain, with games and stories, with hugs and kisses. Nights, soft and warm, with lullabies and goodnight stories, with dreams and hope. Parents, amazing and wonderful, their love and guidance, their support and sacrifice, shaping her into the person she’d become. Memories, woven like a tapestry, of picnics and trips, of holidays and birthdays, of moments of pure joy and wonder. Chil...

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“The Human Mind” by Makayla Cardall

Submitted to Contest #186

Dilapidated buildings. Grey sky. Hopelessness. Fear. Anguish. Loneliness. A desolate wasteland. As far as the eye could see…not a soul. The state of abandonment spoke of ancient life. Now, nothing. Anywhere. So void of life that even the wind dared not breathe. Thump. Thump. Thump. My heartbeat. The only sound. Thump. Thump. Thump. I fell to my knees in dismay. This abandonment was expected, but the rate at which all decayed around me felt…swift. I thought there was more time. To prepare. The sun....

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“The Mirror” by Zion Hintay

Submitted to Contest #186

A young boy. Maybe five years old.Gingerly. Crawls. Out of bed.Mahjong tiles. Crash. Like waves. Upon the shore. Four tables set in the distance. Down the hall. His mom. Her friends. His aunts. Laugh, chatter and scramble. The tiles.Fear set. In deep. He didn't. Want to. Go to. Sleep.He had. In his room. Shared with. A little brother. Heard. Thought. Felt. A voice. In his mind. A warning. He would not. Heed.At twenty five. He worked. To make. Money. For his mom. For his dad. For his brother. Answering phones. All day. Suited him. Well.But li...

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“Love Sick Bar” by Michelle England

Submitted to Contest #186

Brian locked the door after saying good-bye to the last customer he would ever serve. He drew in a long breath and sighed, as he looked around, taking in all the memories he had accumulated over the last 20 years. His favorite memory though, would always be Jenny. His love. His life. His always and forever… and his not-long-enough. He walked behind the bar and stood, for a moment, lost. Memories swimming and swirling. So many of them. Even the ones that seemed insignificant when they happened. Those were suddenly some of the most fond and b...

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“In Pieces” by Jane Andrews

Submitted to Contest #186

Trigger warning: mental health, physical violence, suicide.Author’s note: This is a dadaistic piece and is composed entirely of fragments of lyrics from the following songs (in alphabetical order of artists): ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’, Nick Cave; ‘Fix You’, Coldplay; ‘Afterglow’, ‘In the Glow of the Night’, ‘Snowbound’, ‘The Last Domino’ and ‘Throwing It All Away’, Genesis; ‘Burning Buildings’, Elton John; ‘Crying’ and ‘It’s Over’, Roy Orbison; ‘Smallcreep’s Day’, Mike Rutherford; ‘You’re Not The Man’, Sade; ‘How Can I Tell You?’ and ‘Ruby...

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“Solving for X ” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #186

Electroshock. Feels like my brains are on fire. Smell smoke. Flames everywhere, not a drop to drink. The mattress is not soft. There is no soft place to land. This is a journey inside my broken mind. Strap yourself in good, it’s going to be a bumpy ride. Like Alice down the rabbit hole. The Mad Hatter is waiting for his tea. Nurse Carlin puts the rubber in my mouth. So I won’t bite my tongue off. Words swirl. Phrases sound like alarms. Soon there will be ...

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“Journey Awaits” by Jack Barber

Submitted to Contest #186

Child peers under bed. World of magic awaits! Excitement fills heart. Door, barely visible in shadows. Turns knob and steps inside. Immersed in new realm. Color. Wonders beyond imagination. Everywhere, creatures scurry. Paths lined with exotic plants. Sparkle like diamonds touched by moonlight. Cautiously wander further until ancient tree. Green and alive. Full of secrets carved into trunk. Quickly climbs up through foliage thick like velvet against skin. Presence danger lurking nearby! Feeling danger. Hiding in shadows, watching. Leaping ...

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“And Morning Stars Do Not Shine” by Carolina Mintz

Submitted to Contest #186

An infant a little girl daddy holds her on bended knee her arms ‘round his neck he smiles to the Mother, to the Kodak she holds, from the black and white photograph in the antique frame in the upstairs bedroom on the nightstand where she sleeps, where she looks at his long-ago face before restless dreams of things that cannot be can no longer be and of strangers and lost where in her memory he holds her high over his head smiling up at her the sun crinkles his blue-grey eyes his happiness is hers he will not let her fall. Mother likes to ...

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“Assassination” by Melanie W.

Submitted to Contest #186

ASSASSINATION23 May, 1964Júcaro, CubaThe abandoned blockhouse was 200 yards offshore and perfect. Leftover from the Trocha, a line of fortifications built between 1869 and 1872, from Júcaro to Morón during the first war of Independence, it provided the ideal homebase for communication during the operation. Twenty feet high, twenty feet across, shaped like a square, and made of solid brick, it had stood the test of time. A narrow staircase on the outside wall led from the ground to a doorless entry at the top and into an open floor. It had an...

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“Eight Years Unspoken ” by Morgan Rumsey

Submitted to Contest #186

Warning: This essay contains descriptions of sexual violence, self-harm/suicide, mental health, and substance abuse. 2012 (Freshman Year of Highschool) Dear Dad, I’ve discovered that I am better with the written word rather than the spoken one. Maybe that makes me a coward, to hide behind a sheet of paper, but it is easier for me to speak the truth like this. I know my candy and small gifts today will never make up for the other 364 days of effort you put into making me grow up into a good person. But I appreciate you. Everything...

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“Unconventional Female 101” by Kathleen Hair

Submitted to Contest #186

I usually don’t share in this way. It isn’t a lack of desire which stops me, it is the potential for another’s misunderstanding. When sharing wisdom and experience is my primary aim, many who harbor suspicions assume the worst at every turn. I imagine this is on account of the probability of what they fear or suspect happening, being something within their own capability of doing.My delivery needs some polishing, I know… but I prefer to speak from the heart and shoot from the hip. I’m direct, unfiltered and I’m told it gets me invited exactl...

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“These Things Take Time” by Nico D.

Submitted to Contest #186

CW: internalized homophobia, substance use, mental health issuesDidn't end up being fragments so much as vignettes, but I've been wanting to submit something for months and need to get into the habit of doing it. So here's this. It's a start, I guess. Also, it's not finished, as you can probably tell by how disjointed the first two sections are from the last. I ran out of time before I could fill in the gaps. But again, I needed a start.I. Head Over HeelsOn a summer Saturday morning, Matt wakes up in his twin-sized bed next to James and feel...

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“Glass Jars” by Myranda Wren

Submitted to Contest #186

An outstretched branch bends as clawed feet alight. Breaking blossoms peak through searching for spring. Black wings perched. A glimmering, faded sequined button held fast in a beak. A pause for danger. Flutter. A warm updraft. A peaceful glide. Scattered bread crumbs land softly. A trade. Hands strangely wrinkled grasp one another. A cloud lets free a sunbeam. Reflection. Thoughts of childhood. Sparkles of light scattered on the ground. Wisp of memory. There but for a moment…What was it? Forgotten, forgetting. Hair pushed back neatly. Pal...

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“Slop for Fodder” by Éan Bird

Submitted to Contest #186

On a Friday in March, my life detonated. To be honest, I still can't figure out what the hell happened. Yet, here, I'm being tasked to compose in relational snippets when nothing left exists from the whole. It's bullshit; I'm a science teacher, not a damn author of divisions. But someone once told me dates can carry symbolic weight, so I'll contest and deliver a chronology of the excrement. Served in verfabula fragments, as requested.April 19th, 2020:Most matter, upon ballistic impact, will shred and tear; remnants, like thread, visible...

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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.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 54 stories

“Four Crayons” by Nathaniel Miller

“Hoping for the Sun to Shine” by J D

“The Human Mind” by Makayla Cardall

“The Mirror” by Zion Hintay

“Love Sick Bar” by Michelle England

“In Pieces” by Jane Andrews

“Solving for X ” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

“Journey Awaits” by Jack Barber

“And Morning Stars Do Not Shine” by Carolina Mintz

“Assassination” by Melanie W.

“Eight Years Unspoken ” by Morgan Rumsey

“Unconventional Female 101” by Kathleen Hair

“These Things Take Time” by Nico D.

“Glass Jars” by Myranda Wren

“Slop for Fodder” by Éan Bird

🌟 Similar prompts

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

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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