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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

Write a story about an adventure in the desert.

Posted in General on Oct 2, 2019

Submissions are closed!

Sorry, we are no longer accepting submissions. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

✍️ 24 stories

“Desert Escape” by Joey Gozum

The sweltering heat made John sluggish, and it did not help that the sun's rays felt like the sting of being slapped on the skin. His water bottle was nearly full, but he did not account for the temperature to affect the liquid inside. He took a gulp and nearly spat the water out, it was boiling hot. He capped the bottle and proceeded east trudging over the sandy dune when he spotted another traveler. He hoped that he was not seeing things, and rushed towards the unsuspecting person.“Hey!” he yelled, waving his hand. “Hello.”

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“Reverse” by Will Lopez

The sun came up. Its warmth seeped into the icicles that had formed during the night, sending a wave of crackles across the mountaintop. In his snug, rock-walled house, Norbu blinked a few times, rolled to his feet, and stretched. His mate Dalha stirred beside him, but did not wake. Norbu padded into the next chamber, where their two children sat curled in a bed of brightly colored cloth. That was good; if the sunrise had not woken them, they would sleep for at least another hour.He shook his head, clearing the f...

9 likes 1 comment 1
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“Cobalt” by Viktor Rain

Her bare feet crunched white sand beneath. The march seemed never-ending. Step, crunch, repeat. Step, crunch, repeat. Her calloused toes no longer hurt, but felt lifeless, tiny slabs of flesh and bone displacing insignificant swirls of silvery dust. Endless dunes stretched as far as the eyes could see, a vast, dry ocean of nothingness. She gazed up at the blank canvas above, her amber eyes tearing up from the sun.She coughed and hot air grazed the inside of her dry throat. Fingers clasped around her waterskin, she shook it, but no ...

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“The Desert Mouse” by Zilla Babbitt

The mellow sun rises over the shifting sands of the Sahara Desert. Dawn.Over a ridge, far in the midst of the desert, peeks a small golden desert mouse. It gazes over the rippling sea of sand, rubs its nose, cocks its head, and does an about-face to go back down to its hole alongside the oasis.It freezes suddenly as a slender, striking, evil head rises menacingly before the mouse. It is one of the Yellow Snakes; snakes so venomous it can kill a man in thirty seconds. C...

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“The Sands of Sa'arad” by Arthur Tiberio

"... 'And here the rising sun first touches the golden earth, and the glory of Zoltaeg, the Risen, still lives in the hearts of the people of bronze.'"The words were whipped away from him by the rising wind, and he sighed, lowering the tattered book in his hands with gloomy disdain. "I'm going to kill Wensley."Beside him, knee-deep in snow, a bundled figure coughed loudly into one heavy fur glove. "It's not - a-kaff! - all bad... I'm sure we must be close."But his words were lost on his companion, wh...

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“When nature is on an adventurous trip” by Shazia Bano

Vikram and Rehaan are two best friends and their common interest is travelling. Safari with camp stay in desert was in their bucket list for long. They planned a week trip for this not knowing that nature was also planning her adventure trip in the same week.They started their journey by Bus from Delhi and reached the Manesar district. It was a mesmerizing look to observe the point where sand and sky met at a far distance. Sand was shining like Gold and because of enormous sun-light, it was not possible to open the eyes with...

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“When We Get to the City” by Charlie Noble

I could feel my skin burning, but it felt so good. My eyes seared. Aggie looked ridiculous. She was wearing her wide straw hat and a shawl was wrapped around her head and face. Her eyes were hidden by her darkened spectacles. ‘Bobby, you’re burning.’ I danced away from her, spinning in the sand, relishing the glorious burn of the sun on my skin. ‘Aggie, the air,’ I said, ‘isn’t it the sweetest thing you’ve ever tasted?’ I took a comically big gulp of air, as if I had filled my cheeks with something delic...

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“Iota” by Warren Woods

Just west of Socorro, New Mexico where the highway splits from the interstate due south west, the soapweed yucca and sage brush screens the vast flat land as far as sight allows. Yellow wild flowers grow in the shade yearning for the hot desert rain. The arid sand floor is alive with creatures, indistinguishable from far. At a blurry distance the surrounding earth appears pale terracotta.He shifts his big rig downward as he approaches the paved descent. The inside of his cab smells of stale air. The pine-scented air freshener bough...

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“JOHNNY TALKS TO SNAKES” by Eric Skinner

A flat tire. What’s there to cause a flat tire? There’s nothing out here! Johnny looked at the left front of the car, and there was no denying it; the tire was flat. Grumbling obscenities, he walked back to the trunk. Thank God, there’s the spare. He searched for the stuff to change it with. There! What’s it called? A jack. He looked at the flimsy thing and wondered. He shrugged his eighteen-year-old shoulders and placed it under the left front quarter panel. What now? How w...

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“Mirage” by John Adams

It felt like being in a crowded parking lot, when someone way up ahead is waiting for that choice spot. No one can move in or out. Or forward. Only we were in the desert, not in a parking lot. There were no cars around. Not even a road. Scrub, dust and old rock filled our view all the way to the pass leading to Mirage, our destination. Oh yeah, it was stifling hot.The three of us walked steadily, but we made no discernible progress.Avery and Joe were my companions. We had water, extra shoes, sun block and our p...

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Contest #8

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This week's theme: Off on an Adventure

$50

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Submissions

Ended on 23:59 - Sep 27, 2019 EST

Won by Joshua Insole 🏆

Title: Astro Naught

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