Write about a family who decides to camp out in the back yard during a power outage.

Posted in Funny on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 112 stories

“What happens in the dark” by Julie Adamson

Submitted to Contest #58

I knew something strange was happening the moment I opened the front door. It was way too quiet. Having three children the house was always filled with noise. I called out to my husband Matthew, he didn’t answer. I wondered what the four of them were up to. I put down my groceries bags when my eight year old daughter Ella appeared. Her hair was wind blown and she looked like she’d had a fight. “What happened to you Ella? Where’s your dad?” I asked with concern in my voice. “We were putting up the t...

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“A Simple Happiness ” by Warrior C

Submitted to Contest #58

"Mommy, this is crazy but fun!" The youngest, Charlie tells his mom while playing mobile legend. His oldest sister and father just laugh at him.Teasing.There' s no place as happy as living in harmony. No fights instead just having fun. Full of love and memories.They are Ichon family, living in a nearby Alona beach resort somewhere in Bohol , Philippines. They don't know the announcement of having a blackout since their parents are busy in their work and they are in school. When they arrive from their tiring and usual day, they are ...

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“Lights Out” by Kat Gruszka

Submitted to Contest #58

The scream echoes into the neighboring houses. An equally horrifying silence follows. A silence brought on by ear drum damage or the need for silence after such a loud decibel has been reached. "It's okay." I soothe. "The power just went out. We’ll be fine." "But... my show," sobs Donna, my seventeen year old. "I think you'll survive," I answer back. "Honey?" my beloved of 20 years shouts from the floor above,"Everyone okay?" "Yes dear. You have Charlie?" I ask about our ten year old. No answer starts to move fear towards the fro...

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“Lizzy's birthday” by Agbesanwa Ayomide

Submitted to Contest #58

LIZZY’S BIRTHDAY The first thing that came to my mind as I woke up was that the day had finally come. I immediately felt guilty because I'm supposed to thank God for waking me up and other blessings before going about my day so I quickly went on my knees and prayed making sure I did not rush through it. The excitement that I felt when I woke up started again and this time I could not control it, I started smiling. My name is Elizabeth and I'm the youngest in the house. We are a family of five, my dad, my mom, my two brothers; the twins and...

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“Storm Child” by Cynthia Mackay

Submitted to Contest #58

“It was a dark and stormy night. The walls of the cabin shook with each crash of thunder as the rain pelted the cracked windows. Water ran down the inside of the glass, leaving trails like tears. Wind whistled through holes between the logs, ruffling the blankets the campers were huddled in.” Ron was crouched by the fire, the light dancing across his face, while shadows flickered all around them, his eyes wide as he raised his hands. Leaning towards Dierdra, his little sister he lowered his voice to almost a whisper, “Then, they heard it, sc...

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“Goose” by Chris Wagner

Submitted to Contest #58

A house makes a weird sound when the power goes out. A dying wail comes from some unknown electronic device hidden among the multitude of appliances. The day of the blackout, the image on the plasma TV narrowed to a slit like a closed eye. The dog was the only one not traumatized by the event. Freddy only raised an eyebrow and looked around a moment before resuming his impression of a rug. My daughter Brenda, whose nose had been stuck in her phone, suddenly realized that the wifi wasn't on, and the reading light had ...

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“Blowing in the Wind ” by Louise Muller

Submitted to Contest #58

“A tent! We’re sleeping in a tent,” the twins’ excitement echoed loudly through the house. Rachel smiled warmly. It had been a long time since they had been this excited about anything. The thought saddened her. She was trying her best every day. After Jack’s death she had to take over both parental roles. It hadn’t been easy, but she had no choice in the matter. Sure, people showed up when he died, offering condolences and casseroles. God, there were so many casseroles. In the end so much of it was wasted, much like the life of her yo...

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“First Time Camping” by David Dicaire

Submitted to Contest #58

First Time Camping The power had flickered once, and then twice before it failed completely. “I can’t believe it. This is a total rip off.” Nishad cursed his luck. Just as he was about to beat a game at a level that he had been trying to defeat for a week the power kicked out and he lost all advantage. His sister was furious. “Mother, father, the power went out. Please fix it right now.” Divya smiled at them. Their father Garan looked around and didn’t know what to say or do. The family h...

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“The camp under the moon” by Joan Opoyi

Submitted to Contest #58

It was on a summer,April fool that preparations had been planned on a big camp which was to be done behind the backyard.We were more than excited;meeting family members after a long time.Camping has always been the routine,year couldn't go by without having great times. The enviroment had a beautiful scent of rose;filled with happiness but the silent all over the neighbourhood dropped like a bomb.The silence was everywhere;not even a single music could be heard. There was powerage and everything in the neighborhood had come to a stand still....

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“Shutoff” by Ann Niece

Submitted to Contest #58

Morgan flashed her keychain light in my eyes. “I need to go inside” “Shut that off, it’s not even dark yet. Stay outta the house. if you have to pee, just go over by the trees.” “I need to ask Momma something” “No you don’t. Leave them alone in there, you know they get cranky when it gets hot” Morgan gazed idly around the green tent at nothing in particular, rolling a frozen water bottle along her stretched-out legs, maybe thinking of another needling question. I knew she didn’t really want to go back up to the house, she was just te...

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“Lost” by Shani Buchholz

Submitted to Contest #58

“Jamie! Come on!” “OK, I’m comin’,” Jamie said, grabbing his pillow and “handy-dandy, battery-powered lantern” (it said so on the box). He handed the lantern to Blake, who was seven years his junior. Jamie had just turned thirteen, and felt as though camping out in the backyard was kids’ stuff, but since there was no power, and since his cell phone died an hour ago, he decided to join the rest of his family out back. Dad had called Pacific Gas and Electric earlier today and he was told that a transformer had blown somewhere in the area...

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“Memories in the Dark” by Marie Barger

Submitted to Contest #58

The power went out. Great, just what I needed. Now I can’t get my essay started. I hear the younger girls screech at the excitement. It’s not like I could concentrate anyway. Dad comes marching down the stairs. He looks at me and waves his phone in his hand. “They said it was a tree that fell down a few blocks down.” He walks over to the counter and sets the phone down. He rubs his head in frustration. That’s what you get for moving to Kansas. High winds and fallen trees. Fortunately I was sitting on the couch because Keira and Jalice...

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“The Campout” by Monica Chaddick

Submitted to Contest #58

Six year old Sydney and four year old Rodney were playing chase in the living room when the lights suddenly blinked twice, then went out. They both screamed. Mom ran into the living room with a flashlight, telling them everything was okay and there was no need to be scared. Dad came in a moment later and told Mom that they hadn’t blown a fuse so it must be a problem with the transformer. Dad handed each of the kids a flashlight. &nb...

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“Everything Is Always Fine” by Maahi S

Submitted to Contest #58

“Nia, they’re here!” my mom yelled. I stumbled out of the makeshift tent, hurriedly smoothening my hair as much as possible, and fumbled in the dark on the way back to our backyard porch. They can’t see me anyway. I forgot the flashlight in the tent but I followed the voices to the front door. I could somewhat make out their faces under the glow of the nearby streetlight. “Hello Nia,” Mr. Sanders greeted. He had always been a jolly person but the tiredness in his voice seemed more apparent now. “Good evening, please come in,” I replied ...

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“The Light the Night Went Out in Georgia” by John Barrow

Submitted to Contest #58

There I was, sitting cross-legged on my bedroom floor, kicking Evan's butt in the middle of a massive multiplayer match, when everything went dark. My big sister Julie let out a typical groan from her room down the hall. It was the usual groan she gave when nothing was going her way. It was the usual groan of a 16-year-old girl who's treated like a princess by my stepdad Cliff. She was probably in the middle of taking her millionth selfie or shooting some lame TikTok video lip-sync masterpiece. We've had power outages before. Since we m...

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Title: In the Dark

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Write about a family who decides to camp out in the back yard during a power outage.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 112 stories

“What happens in the dark” by Julie Adamson

“A Simple Happiness ” by Warrior C

“Lights Out” by Kat Gruszka

“Lizzy's birthday” by Agbesanwa Ayomide

“Storm Child” by Cynthia Mackay

“Goose” by Chris Wagner

“Blowing in the Wind ” by Louise Muller

“First Time Camping” by David Dicaire

“The camp under the moon” by Joan Opoyi

“Shutoff” by Ann Niece

“Lost” by Shani Buchholz

“Memories in the Dark” by Marie Barger

“The Campout” by Monica Chaddick

“Everything Is Always Fine” by Maahi S

“The Light the Night Went Out in Georgia” by John Barrow

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about someone who purposefully causes a power outage.

Write a story where the power goes out on a spaceship or submarine.

Write about a character who’s stuck in an elevator when the power goes out.

Write a story about someone feeling powerless.

Contest #58

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

880

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: