Set your story in an unlikely sanctuary.

Posted in High School on Oct 25, 2022

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✍️ 39 stories

“Jacob's Ladder” by Dustin Gillham

“Awake again?” Bobby stares into the nurse’s pale blue eyes. “Still trying to figure out if this is heaven or hell.” He views her curves as she bends down to connect the IV. He looks at the clouds beyond a tree in the window and then stares at her round bottom. “Oh, and how could this be such a horrible place?” “When you’re here, I get a glimpse of heaven.” ...

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“A Friend Indeed” by Howard Halsall

Walter Waterhouse shut his heavy front door with a neurosurgeon’s precision, making as little noise as possible. Clutching a laptop bag in one hand, he breathed a sigh of relief and extended his free arm across the swirling floral wallpaper to flick the light switch. A soft overhead glow illuminated the vestibule and the silent corridor leading to the rear. Walter tiptoed over unopened envelopes, snaked his way past cardboard packing boxes, and entered the empty kitchen to be greeted by a familiar voice.“I worry about you sometimes...

12 comments 12

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“Junebird and Love” by Gem Cassia

Love crept in through the window silent and unannounced, like a mouse tip-toeing its way along the shadows of a dimly lit room. Or at least, that was the effect that she had been aiming for. What happened instead was a clumsy maneuver that involved stumbling over the roughly hewn wooden sill and landing on the floor of the treehouse in a crumpled heap. That was the way she made her entrances— it was the same way she had entered my life and it was the same way she greeted me everyday— stumbling, and messy, and beauti...

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“Resettlement Notes” by Cecilia L. Maddison

This story contains themes of mental health and reference to sexual abuse.”Don’t forget your pills.”Alan slurps his tea to cool it. Some dribbles down his chin, adding to the damp patch on his chest. His mouth contorts with involuntary lip-smacking and grimacing caused by years of heavy medication.“Your pills,” repeats Agnes, nodding to the small paper cup on the table. She stands next to him, arms crossed over her stout body as she waits, sternly overseeing this regular ritual. Her ey...

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“SANCTUARY ON HELL STREET” by Chris Campbell

The Arizona sun completed another life creating and life ending day across the desertscape of cactus and tumbleweeds of the Old West. What had been a hot dusty passage of energy warming all in its radiative glare, made way for the setting of the solar giant - triggering the onset of an early evening chill. Days out in the desert were hot and dry. The nights, bitterly cold and treacherous. That mattered little to the young Mexican family - kneeling before several agitated men baying like dogs howling at a full moon. The goosebumps ris...

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“The Door” by Suma Jayachandar

“So, is this the best you have on offer?” a sceptical voice inquires.I am jolted out of my corner, from my meditative mood. I put my pen down and smile.There is doubt in slit eyes, pursed lips and the tilt of her head.Oh! This one has high expectations.I see her eyes wandering through the world in my corner. The mountains, the rivers, the deserts. And a mixture of happy, sad and every other variation of characters going on about their lives.She shakes her head. And checks her catalogue.“I...

18 comments 18

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“Fragments of Spencer” by J.C. Lovero

(TW: contains themes of death and dying)I sat on crinkly paper in the exam room while the blood pressure cuff deflated. This table was not like the others I had sat on before for physicals or blood tests; it was softer and more comfortable, almost like a recliner. Designed for the procedure I was about to do.Dr. Kristina Abbott pressed her glasses up to the bridge of her nose. “One hundred twenty over sixty,” she said after reading my blood pressure. They always said that like you were supposed to know what the numb...

24 comments 24

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“The Werewolf's Rose” by Mike Rigby

A beast, from grace was his mind to fall, Did not see the signs; did not heed the call, A lone wolf indeed, but a heart there to give, Ugly he saw himself, so alone he did live. ‘twas a fine day that gave us the hour of luck, It began with a beauty, and the rose she would pluck... The garden was a place many visited ...

6 comments 6

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“Be(longing)” by Rebecca Miles

This story contains material that is distressing: physical abuse. Before I can do anything, he’s upon me. Big hands clamp onto my neck, easily circling it. The man’s grip is unrelenting; I can’t turn my head to bite those fleshy fingers let alone duck and dodge. He flips me onto my side, knocking the breath out of me. Kneeling in the dirt, he swiftly slips a frayed rope out of his overall’s oran...

8 comments 8

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“Broken Hand” by Graham Kinross

Deep in the dark, beneath everything she knew Sir Danielle Longbow was introduced to one strange species by another. Kutharma, a cenaga, held a flaming torch high to reveal four bipeds that were more and less like Danielle than the quadruped serpent with antlers that was making the introduction. “I am Broken Hand,” said the foremost of the uamhith. Its arm was the length of Sir Longbow’s, but the width...

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“Secret Women's Business” by Leticia Mooney

'Sister, how long have you known?' My devastated whispers echoed through the dark cavern. It responded with dripped echoes. I imagined that the faint breeze kissing my face was a collective of kisses from all women past and future. A gentle honouring, a please forgive us. 'Did you know what you were doing? That you were complicit in this destruction?' I sat heavily...

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“A piece of lightning” by Bruce Thomas

I was walking home yesterday, and I saw a piece of lightning sticking out of the ground. I squinted at it, looked behind me and back. It was really real, that was for sure. Between the bus stop and the corner, it was.I looked at it.I pressed my pupils on it real hard; I didn't want to miss a single detail.It went up into the sky.Man, oh man, lightning is hugely huge!"Jesus, how did this get here?" I asked.Nobody answered my question.I a...

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“Doggone” by Katherine Willey

The light penetrating the room’s dusty curtains seemed too bright for the time of day. Still groggy, Archie lay blinking for a couple minutes trying to figure out what it was that felt off. It took a moment to recall exactly where he was. His head hurt a little, probably due to the five Coors he’d downed the night before, but that wasn’t it. Something else was out of kilter. On this fourth morning alone i...

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“Aftermath” by SEAN MILLER

The peace found in the ruins of a battlefield is unlike any other. The aftermath of a battle is the antithesis of itself. War is chaos. A cacophony of sounds barraging one’s earlobes from every direction. The reverberating clang of metal as two bloodied swords strike, the erupting shudder of a cannon-shot rippling through the air, the commanding shouts from generals as they attempt to raise their voice ab...

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“Gallows” by Erich Cliffe

Today was Gabriel's birthday. And no, it wasn't a happy occasion. He wasn't partying at a club, treating himself to a luxurious brunch, or window shopping along the posh promenades of the city. No; as required by law, he was spending his day standing in line at the "DSR": Department of Supernatural Registration. Not all cities had departments like this, but this city had an unprecedentedly large community of supernatural species, which the humans called "Others". (The term made Gabriel scoff. It made Others...

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Set your story in an unlikely sanctuary.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 39 stories

“Jacob's Ladder” by Dustin Gillham

“A Friend Indeed” by Howard Halsall

“Junebird and Love” by Gem Cassia

“Resettlement Notes” by Cecilia L. Maddison

“SANCTUARY ON HELL STREET” by Chris Campbell

“The Door” by Suma Jayachandar

“Fragments of Spencer” by J.C. Lovero

“The Werewolf's Rose” by Mike Rigby

“Be(longing)” by Rebecca Miles

“Broken Hand” by Graham Kinross

“Secret Women's Business” by Leticia Mooney

“A piece of lightning” by Bruce Thomas

“Doggone” by Katherine Willey

“Aftermath” by SEAN MILLER

“Gallows” by Erich Cliffe

🌟 Similar prompts

Write from the point of view of a character writing a letter to their past or future self.

Write about a character attempting to meditate or do something mindfully.

Write about a character discovering a surprising strength in either themself or another.

Start your story during a team building exercise.

Contest #146

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

224

Contest entries

141

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Tired of MS Word?

Explore more writing prompt ideas: