Write a Western-inspired story in a new genre or setting (e.g. a space western, fantasy western, etc.)

Posted in Fiction on Jun 23, 2023

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✍️ 78 stories

“What's Stranger Than a Stranger?” by Jay DeBurgh

Submitted to Contest #204

They say humans will one day be grateful to be extinct, then Aliens will come and pick their bones, creating museums of their past. "Marks Town next stop Jennyville in two hours, so go freshen up and eat." "Oh my aching bones Neville, I think we could settle here rather than Jennyville, don't ya think?" "Sure Ma,” said Neville Prendergast, at seventeen with thick flame red hair and pale skin. Because he was gentle, he had been bullied everywhere they had settled. So his mother took them far from civilisation, hoping she wouldn't regre...

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“Heat” by Brittany Anderson

Submitted to Contest #204

1“These are decisions we should be making together!” Ibón shouted at the wall, because he can never look me in the eyes when he was angry, apparently even in dire situations like this.He kicked the table in front of us and a cloud of dust glimmered across the sun rays. I turned to the window behind him, seeing the unknowing waves draw back to leave a long desert of white sand. The only boat in view bobbed by the half-wrecked dock, the two occupants shielding their eyes to look out for us.“I know we just met them, but this is our only chance ...

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“Trouble Walked In” by Janie Holliday

Submitted to Contest #204

The saloon door creaked open, heralding a hot breeze and a figure silhouetted by midday sun. Not a few eyes glanced up from their mugs to squint at the shadow as it meandered through the doorway. The bar man — a man with a bushy beard who was wider than he was tall — paid the figure no mind until they strolled over to the bar. He continued polishing a glass stein as the stranger poured themselves into the seat in front of him. The character was as distinct as they had attempted to make themself indistinct. They wore a wide-brimmed hat, ...

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“The Number” by Elaine Burgess

Submitted to Contest #204

The Number It was a beautiful day in October 2021…I thought about not going to the local Wild Horse & Burro BLM adoption event happening in our county, but as always, when one was more or less local, I attended… you see, since the 70’s, I have been active in Wild Horse and Burro advocacy , the overwhelming drive and something in my soul just said go.. go... go... go... to this event today. I got up before the chickens with my cats and coffee, got dressed that morning early, my usual jeans shirt boots and off I went. Oh, how I wished I ...

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“Joker Jones and the Asteroid” by Ray Taylor

Submitted to Contest #204

It could hardly be called an asteroid. Barely 150 meters at the widest and weighing in at a few thousand tons. A mere pebble in the Asteroid Belt, it had only been discovered and registered two years before. But it was his asteroid, ‘ZZTP0DxQ’ which he had named Asteroid Charlene. Well, strictly speaking it wasn’t his asteroid. Not in the strictest sense of what it means to own something. Space law did not permit ownership of an asteroid or any celestial body, but he had registered his mission with the Space Resource Utilization sub-com...

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“Silver Bullet” by Cedric Busteed

Submitted to Contest #204

Chanam could feel Luna’s gaze on him as he loaded the rifle. The girl was curious, which was a given considering she’d fallen out of time. And as her closest living descendent, Chanam had a responsibility to her. He carefully calibrated the scope on his rifle. Naturally, she thought he was fully occupied, but the biological and synthetic modifications he’d undergone in his youth gave him more than just quicker reflexes. One stream of consciousness calculated various atmospheric conditions, another watched her through one of the OAD’s many...

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“Iron in the Heart, Kindness in the Hands” by The-Burrowing-Owl- Author

Submitted to Contest #204

The tunnel was cramped and dark and damp. Fortunately it was impossible to get lost in this part of the underground, because though Inessa couldn’t tell the difference between the dirt under her hands and the backs of her eyelids, there was only one way forward. It was both terrifying and reassuring. The air was musty and stale. This passageway wasn’t built for frequent travel, and the ventilation was laughable at best. This was no safe place to linger in. The tunnel began to slope upwards. Inessa instinctively tried to duck ...

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“"Shootout at the A.R. Depot."” by Valerie Shand

Submitted to Contest #204

SHOOTOUT AT THE A.R. DEPOT It was dawn on Urelia X9G. Deputy U.S. Marshal Bat “Wild Bill” Masterson reluctantly forced his eyes open and stretched, groaning a bit as he did. He heard his joints pop and crack in protest of waking up and moving. He was snugly cocooned in his mummy-shaped, heat-generating sleeping bag that was tucked deeply into a cave. He’d needed it to survive the frigid overnight, but with the rising of Urelia’s three suns, X9G was heating up rapidly. Bill thought, I’m way too old for this assignment. I shouldn’t have be...

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“A Journey towards Serenity” by Lorraine B

Submitted to Contest #204

Like a delicate melody, raindrops patter the windowpane, gently awakening me from my slumber. Day after day, year after year, the scorching and relentless sun makes its mark, causing my heart to brim with gratitude for the soothing presence of rain. Presented in its purest and most pristine form, I cannot think of anything else that possesses a beauty greater than the gentle rain in the early morning.Gradually regaining my senses, I feel the soft embrace of bed sheets envelope my body, with its caress evoking memories of the tender cradle of...

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“A Buffalo Woman's War” by Hayley Chau

Submitted to Contest #204

I was born on May, 16 2099. The same day a white buffalo calf was born as well. A white buffalo is extremely rare. Now if that isn’t odd already, a lunar eclipse occurred that day. That’s not the mind blowing part, get ready for this … the moment the Moon aligned in between Earth and the Sun, was the exact time of our births. What are the chances? All of our food sources are genetically cloned in a lab to end starvation around the world. However, a white buffalo was never encoded into the stem cell of that species, so how a WH...

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“Free Will” by Joel Wilson

Submitted to Contest #204

Daddy never told Jay what getting old feels like. He thought old was when the body began to slow down, and bones started creakin' more often. This wasn't it.Old now means one was lucky enough to survive the collapse and store enough water from the Colorado River before it all disappeared.The river is dry to the bone; ain't a soul brave enough to walk these parts without a pistol strapped to their side. Any drop of water is life, but it also means death.Jay shot a bandit a time or two. Theft is a sin though people weren't being taught that or...

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“Adelaide” by Holly Gilbert

Submitted to Contest #204

When Adelaide thought about how her day would be going, going down a canyon in a popped blimp that is currently on fire was not what she had in mind. The yellow snakes on her head hissed wildly as she felt the scorching heat on her skin. Of course she was going to get a faulty blimp! Just when she was going to get the most interesting story! No one in the city ever treated a gorgon with their utmost respect and concern. Let alone, a gorgon who is also a journalist. I am not dying like this! She thought fiercely. The blimp was being...

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“Wild Soapman” by Amanda Rantanen

Submitted to Contest #204

Since moving into my great-grandfather’s homestead deep in Oregon’s Cascade Range in 2020, it’s been just me and Poncho, my trusty Bernese Mountain Dog. My great-grandfather was Samuel Adams Squatch, otherwise known as S.A.Squatch. You might have heard of him but you likely never saw him. I bet you are wondering why I would want to be alone in the wild west. The answer is simple and complex. I’m a germaphobe. I was freaked out about the novel virus, I hated wearing masks over my huge beard, and I am scared of needles. It’s called trypano...

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“The Snipe” by Claire Creely

Submitted to Contest #204

Trigger warnings: weapons, animal harm and death The school parking lot, after school let out at 3 and before boy scouts began at 4, was a lawless place. But Jerry was ten now, and with double digits came double pressure to toughen up, put on a brave face, and keep his head held high while he ate baby carrots from a ziplock bag by the bike rack in the parking lot, keeping an eye on the other boy scouts romping his way. Today was his first day in scouts. Sure, he knew these boys from school. He saw them sitting in the back of the cl...

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“Sunset” by Sam Jacobsen

Submitted to Contest #204

Dusty Sangria went down on one knee by the first corpse. Leaning over it, Dusty motioned to remove his hat, but stopped before touching it. Something in the corpse’s face made reverence and respect seem unnecessary—gnarled and swirled up into a smile the facial muscles shouldn’t have made possible. Dusty could feel the corpse staring down into his soul, even though it had no eyes. “Howsit then?” “Eh.” “Dead?” “Yeeuuup.” “How it goes. All of em?” “Yes” “Hm?” “Christ, Marlo. Yes.&n...

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Write a Western-inspired story in a new genre or setting (e.g. a space western, fantasy western, etc.)

Submissions are closed

✍️ 78 stories

“What's Stranger Than a Stranger?” by Jay DeBurgh

“Heat” by Brittany Anderson

“Trouble Walked In” by Janie Holliday

“The Number” by Elaine Burgess

“Joker Jones and the Asteroid” by Ray Taylor

“Silver Bullet” by Cedric Busteed

“Iron in the Heart, Kindness in the Hands” by The-Burrowing-Owl- Author

“"Shootout at the A.R. Depot."” by Valerie Shand

“A Journey towards Serenity” by Lorraine B

“A Buffalo Woman's War” by Hayley Chau

“Free Will” by Joel Wilson

“Adelaide” by Holly Gilbert

“Wild Soapman” by Amanda Rantanen

“The Snipe” by Claire Creely

“Sunset” by Sam Jacobsen

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about a stranger coming to town and shaking up the order of things.

Set your story in a desert town.

Write a story about someone undertaking a long, dangerous journey.

Write a story about someone seeking revenge for a past wrong.

Contest #204

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

298

Contest entries

94

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: