Start your story with a big company pulling an April Fools’ prank that ends up going horribly wrong.

Posted in Holiday on Jul 8, 2021

Submissions are closed

Sorry, we are not accepting submissions for this prompt as it is not part of an active contest. Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy Prompts account.

Or create a new Reedsy account:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 82 stories

“Every Fool Thing” by Rani Jayakumar

Submitted to Contest #87

I only kind of survived because I’m not on social media. After all the scares of recent years, I begged off, finding out too late that I couldn’t see my friends’ baby pictures or even yoga videos anymore. Everyone was not only completely online, but on just two major apps where they all shared everything - photos, videos, where they were, what they were doing, what they were going to do. The turning point was when the news media got on social media. Now it wasn’t news unless it was on Cheep or Lookbook. So of course, when some VP who’d had...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Escape clown tower ” by Ally Evans

Submitted to Contest #87

Charlie Higgson, Boss of this branch of Diebold, inc vending machines, lay back in his chair with his feet resting on his desk and his eyes glued to the office clock. He’d been waiting months for April first to arrive, the entire office knew it. They also knew his pranks bombed every year, such as last year where he tried to saran wrap the toilets. He had done it the night before so the nightly cleaning crew took them off and the only reason the staff found out was because Charlie came in all huffy and stompy that day. This year ...

1 comment 1

Read story

“Fired” by Delilah Wolf

Submitted to Contest #87

There is silence. Not a single sound fills the office. The tension could probably kill someone if it chose to. Harry, one of our co-worker will be walking into the office any second now. Today is April 1st but yesterday we pulled a few pranks on him to make him think that today is the 2nd. That's normal. My girlfriend, Fay, and I love to pull pranks on people around the office. We are super lucky to work at the same place but then again, we met here. As far as pranks go, we push past that. Every. Single. Year. Our plan for this year is simpl...

3 comments 3

Read story

“THE DAY OF FOOLS” by Debbie Curtin

Submitted to Contest #87

The idea for this surprise game changer happened at a recent conference set in Miami. It was to take place today and coincidentally the date was April 1. The big drug companies were meeting to discuss the health crisis across the country. They would each be staking a claim to a region to market and sell to individuals, pharmacies, hospitals, etc. Everyone who attended this particular event, came with their best product, which was not so much about their actual product, but more about the approach with their upscale show boat staff and ...

0 comments 0

Read story

“A wicked sense of humour” by NK Hatendi

Submitted to Contest #87

Nadia was prepared for anything on April Fool’s Day. Eric, her son, could not be trusted to spend the whole day without coming up with some prank. With his wicked sense of humour, Eric was a man child who never tired of practical jokes. That’s how he was. An only child, who had grown up in a sheltered environment, he struggled to make friends, and his loneliness had resulted in treating his mother as the best toy ever. He had promised his mother a weekend away and knew she loved the scenic drives into the country to visit historic building...

4 comments 4

Read story

“Retroverser” by Johan Rosenblad

Submitted to Contest #87

I don't really know what to do now. There is no Internet anymore. The last piece of the Internet the world was concerned about was that crowdfunding page. I saw it too. It was good This is what it said: “Funded in 1 hour!” (Imagine that!) “Have you ever sent a mail or a text that you regretted the moment you hit the “send” button, or later, when the consequences backfired? Have you sent a mail to your boss’ secretary the day after your wild office party, thanking her for the great after-party you two had in her room, and mistakenly hit t...

3 comments 3

Read story

“The Washing of the Lions” by Bonnie Seach

Submitted to Contest #87

THE WASHING OF THE LIONS A big company pulls an April Fools’ prank that ends up going horribly wrong . Bernie, the Editor of a widely read newspaper scratched his tousled head . The top button of his shirt was undone and his tie hung forlornly. A noose around his neck would have lent some cheer to his mood. Three empty coffee cups crowded his desk. He drummed his figures anxiously. What was troubling the usually dynamic, confident director of daily news? He loved to remind everyone of the importance of news. “The word comes from the ...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Email Fool's Day” by Christian Hanson

Submitted to Contest #87

He was excited to find 150 new emails in his inbox. He was about ready to give up on his dream of blogging but when he opened his inbox this morning, all it showed him was that his patience had finally paid off. Some of them were spam, but he was used to that. He deleted those right away. That still left a good 75 to 100 emails left over to review and see what the heck was going on. Why did it take 6 months for him to receive 150 emails total let alone all in one day? He thought to himself. Before he reviewed all the emails he decided to go...

0 comments 0

Read story

“It's The Middle Ages, Sire” by Robert Consiglio

Submitted to Contest #87

“Who is responsible for this mess?” roars Jack Tomlinson, editor-in-chief of The New York Times, chomping on his unlit cigarette so hard that it nearly splits in two. He slaps down the April 1st issue of the paper onto his desk. “That would be our Section Editor Ted Periwinkle,” says Bureau Chief Norman Atchinson. “He’s our best!” Norman turns and leaves. “Perrywinkle, hmm,” Jack grumbles. He depresses his intercom and growls “Ted, this is Jack. I want you in m...

1 comment 1

Read story

“It’s All Fun and Games ” by Rosa Brock

Submitted to Contest #87

I was seven. I remember the blue sky and the soft snowflakes that sifted slowly, seemingly, from the heavens. “Look both ways, Anna” I heard my mother say. “Anna, look both ways“ I barely heard her voice, slowly rising. I opened my mouth and stuck out my tongue to greet a lonely snowflake. “Anna!” I jumped, startled by the sudden exclamation and bit my tongue. The taste of blood flooding my senses. ”Sorry, mom” I looked to my left then to my right. “All clear“ I said smoothly while smiling at my mother who couldn’t possible frown any de...

5 comments 5

Read story

“The New Job Offer” by Rajesh Patel

Submitted to Contest #87

Christos, but people who knew him well, called him Chris. I called him Chris and sometimes, I called him Iceman. Why? Because Chris was a Top Gun fan. The movie from 1986 and he adored the character played by Val Kilmer. Chris had been working for a long time for this major telecom player in the country. A good decade. He was good at what he did. I would say to him: Chris, you are the best there is, the best there was, the best there ever will be. Yes, Chris was also a WWE/WWF fan. And…a huge Bret Hart fan. So, using thi...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Find the treasure” by Rocío Ibáñez

Submitted to Contest #87

"As you all know, this date has been a problematic one for the company" started saying the CEO of Green's Garden, who founded the company ten years ago when he started selling homemade vegan sweets "And I know that you all like a good laugh and to make some type of celebration, but since Edgar pulled that prank of fake pig blood on Marilyn, Human Resources and basically all of us here decided that there would be no more practical jokers allowed in this work space" he continued as he took off his jacket and untied his tie, the one that he had...

1 comment 1

Read story

“My Big Shot” by Samuel Yi

Submitted to Contest #87

Beep, beep, beep, smack. I yawn as the bright morning light covers me in all of its glory. Fine, that kind of sounded cheesy. I rub my eyes and look at the time and- holy moly! Its 7:00 AM and I'm not even dressed! I quickly put some clothes on, brush my teeth and check the time one more time. Something was off. The time was still 7:00 when I clearly spent at least 20 minutes. I was still puzzled, when I heard it. That cruel, evil and sinister laughter. My little brother tumbled out of my closet laughing like a hyena. I smack my head in sham...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Amicus Curiae ” by Aiyana Henderson

Submitted to Contest #87

"There is this constant belief in the courtroom that anyone who is able to serve justice is a hero. But the reality is that we're not supposed to be the superheroes. The heroes are the people who support our clients outside of the courtroom. That doesn't mean it has to stop there. We will always be known as the amicus curiae." That was the most gratifying speech that my now-fiancé, Marianne Clint, had made towards me on the first day of our legal briefings. I never even stopped thinking about that Latin phrase. Out of all the phrases in l...

0 comments 0

Read story

“Who Wants a Danish?” by Lori Colt

Submitted to Contest #87

Nathaniel Goodwin’s owl shaped alarm clock rings at 6:58am sharp. It has rung at the same time for the last 42 years, since he was five-years-old and his mother woke him for kindergarten. Even during days when no school or work beckons him, he sets the alarm, a sound he has come to rely on, an assurance that he can start his day and everything will go according to plan. He raises up in bed, flings his legs over the edge and puts his rather large feet into his red and white checkerboard slippers. Right foot first, followed by the left. Befo...

5 comments 5

Read story

Load more stories

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a mischievous pixie or trickster god.

Kids – 206 stories

Write about someone who’s spent a whole year planning a big prank, and now they’re finally ready to pull it off.

Middle School – 75 stories

Write about someone who hates pranks and spends April Fools’ Day doing good deeds instead.

Holiday – 69 stories

Write about someone who goes to great lengths to avoid being pranked on April 1st, only to realize they had the date wrong and it’s already April 2nd.

Holiday – 60 stories

Contest #87

Enter our weekly contest!

This week's theme: Fool Me Once

$50

Prize money

492

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 02, 2021 EST

Won by Catherine Hill 🏆

Title: Samill the Trickster

View details

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

We'll send you 5 prompts each week. Respond with your short story and you could win $250!

Menu

CONNECT

BLOG

APPS

TOOLS

ABOUT

Start your story with a big company pulling an April Fools’ prank that ends up going horribly wrong.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 82 stories

“Every Fool Thing” by Rani Jayakumar

“Escape clown tower ” by Ally Evans

“Fired” by Delilah Wolf

“THE DAY OF FOOLS” by Debbie Curtin

“A wicked sense of humour” by NK Hatendi

“Retroverser” by Johan Rosenblad

“The Washing of the Lions” by Bonnie Seach

“Email Fool's Day” by Christian Hanson

“It's The Middle Ages, Sire” by Robert Consiglio

“It’s All Fun and Games ” by Rosa Brock

“The New Job Offer” by Rajesh Patel

“Find the treasure” by Rocío Ibáñez

“My Big Shot” by Samuel Yi

“Amicus Curiae ” by Aiyana Henderson

“Who Wants a Danish?” by Lori Colt

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a mischievous pixie or trickster god.

Write about someone who’s spent a whole year planning a big prank, and now they’re finally ready to pull it off.

Write about someone who hates pranks and spends April Fools’ Day doing good deeds instead.

Write about someone who goes to great lengths to avoid being pranked on April 1st, only to realize they had the date wrong and it’s already April 2nd.

Contest #87

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

492

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: