Write a story set in a city where the power suddenly goes out, leaving everyone in darkness.

Posted in Horror on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 187 stories

“The Perfect Pitch” by Kelly Elleray

Submitted to Contest #92

Graham Mauet stood on the mound and scraped his cleat through the ochre gravel. He kicked at the rubber that had started innocent but now, seven innings later, was abused and bruised from the hundreds of cleated stomps piercing it. Graham squinted up into the crowd who lay in shadows outside the bright glare of the stadium lights that chased away the night and rendered the whole field in artificial daylight. Before the game a veteran had told Graham: “Don’t look up.” Graham had done exactly that though when he walked onto the field fo...

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“Fading Embers” by Holly Reynolds

Submitted to Contest #92

By: Danie Reynolds Fading Embers “Dad,” My voice cracks. “Dad,” I repeat. He still doesn't meet my eyes. “Dad.” My voice hardens. My words sound harsher than I mean them to, but I don’t change my tone. “You can’t send me away. I won’t go.” He finally looks up at me. His brown eyes bore into mine, flickering with a bit of sadness, but that’s taken over by the anger in them. “It’s for your own good, Saira. For both of us.” My throat tightens, and my eyes prick. “No. You mean for your own good. None of this ever was about me....

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“The Day ” by AVA PHILLIPS

Submitted to Contest #92

Tuesday, March 16, 7:30 A.m. I headed to the bus stop ready to start the day. I forgot my phone that day, which is an odd occurrence. But I brushed it off as if I had forgotten to brush my teeth. It was a cold dark morning. There were 8 weeks of school left. until I was in 11th grade. Maybe I should introduce myself. I'm Nathan I go to White Creek High School I'm 16 and in 10th grade. I love school. The part I like most about it is that my best friend Chris goes to the same school. He is one of the smart kids. He brags and boasts about being...

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“The Shop On Ironwood Avenue” by O J

Submitted to Contest #92

Shao stood quietly behind his antiquated cash register. His father had opened this small roadside shop with the savings that he’d accumulated working in factories. His mother had worked tirelessly as a maid to help run the house. Together, they’d managed to buy the shop and have spent every single day placing orders, arguing with suppliers for cheapest prices, fixed the place with their own hands. The shop, dimly lit with old fluorescent tubes, was their sweat, blood, and pride. Holidays, weekends, school vacations, all were spent in the sho...

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“City Blackout” by Bryan Ritchey

Submitted to Contest #92

It was a normal afternoon in the city, cars usually driving, kids at a park or two, people late rushing to work. It’s the usual type of day you would have, although there was still school and kids would have to go to it including me. I always thought school was a waste of time and i still think it is because you can look anything up on the internet very easily, but i'm forced to because of my parents saying they want me to have an education. As I walked down the long street crowded with multiple people rushing past it was like you couldn’t s...

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“The City of Death” by Lyra Dhani

Submitted to Contest #92

When the light went out, Giligan didn’t flinch. It was hard to discern his expression in the darkness but Jenni knew what to watch out for. Even when the outline of his figure didn’t break, Jenni heard his silent scream. The loss of the light made no difference to him. She crossed the room to sat by his side. “Are you scared?” she spoke up. They both knew she wasn’t talking about the devouring shadow circling them. Materialistic, worldly things hardly mattered to Giligan, the same way a dead man would regard his past life. ...

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“Dark Nights in Cincy ” by Christian Hinrichsen

Submitted to Contest #92

Dark Nights In Cincy Somewhere in near future. “It would appear that the earth has been having a wave of Meteor Showers. Though a lot is in question, the Cincinnati Observatory and NASA have this to report.....Static...Static” As a series of meteors strike the electrical grid in the Greater Cincinnati area, this late summer day. In the distance some people start to rise up and panic as the meteors have done damage to the electrical grid/ Backup generators at University of Cincinnati and St. Elizabeth Healthcare are working sporadicall...

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“Gone into the Night ” by Sarah Jovel

Submitted to Contest #92

It was a hot summer night in court-side town when these three kids by the name of Johnny, Mila, and Jake went out to ride their bikes, when out of no where the street light and building light flickered, and the electricity popped and then shut down, making everything pitch black. You could feel the fear that set in court-side town. They started to freak out and decided to all go home to their families fast. When they finally got home they were all shook at what they all noticed. They noticed that all the adults were gone, like they disappear...

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“The darkness ain't getting to me” by Ong Teck Wu

Submitted to Contest #92

"The lights will come back up, don't worry!"I sat still in front of my computer, my right hand still on my mouse. I felt like a solar panel, waiting patiently for the sun to rise. My siblings shrieked. Chill the f**k out. We waited, 10 seconds, 1 minute, 2 minutes. It was usually never this long."Mum! Have you reset the circuit breaker yet?""Yes I did, dear! But nothing is happening."Hmm... I looked out of my window: I saw pitch-black across the street; the silhouettes of randoms walking slowly without the guidance of the lampposts. Torchlig...

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“It always just a bag of rice, & she was always out of her mind. ” by Destinee Emenhiser

Submitted to Contest #92

It was just after midnight in small town called Ashland. Rain was tip tapping on the roof and beading up on the windows, the soft blades of grass on the lawn were sure to be sparkling with dew when it finally stopped raining. After what seemed like hours, Jessie had finally gotten her baby girl to fall asleep and she could finally start working.Jessie was the owner of a small clothing shop located in the center of town. For the most part, it was just Jessie and her best friend Alfie running the show. Alfie usually ordered the products from t...

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“Dark on the Line” by Jamie Carrick

Submitted to Contest #92

Lyra’s cheek rubbed up against the cold, fogged glass of the train window as the trees rushed by, each one appearing and disappearing like a still image in a zoetrope, immediately replaced by another. Her vision blurred as she watched them pass, trying to concentrate on something, anything, other than the aching pain in her chest. It wasn’t a literal pain, but an ethereal throb that crawled beneath her ribs and nestled in the chambers of her heart. The hollow pain that could only come from the passing of a loved one. As the train rattled and...

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“Guest of Honor” by Tyrone Dirksen

Submitted to Contest #92

The darkness fell upon them suddenly, without warning. No storm ushered the way, no meteorologists or news anchors cautioned them about the power outage. One minute there was light, the next there was none. Close to seventy people had gathered that night for the party. It was Sebastian Beck’s forty-fifth birthday, and his closest friends and colleagues had been invited to celebrate at the Attic, the newest, swankiest bar on the outskirts of Chicago. Most nights there was a hefty cover charge to gain entrance to the Attic, but of course Bec...

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“The Dog Days of Summer” by Tricia Shulist

Submitted to Contest #92

Silence. Not just quiet, but silence. Total silence. No more humming from all of the electric and electronic appliances in the house. Just, nothing. Blackout. I looked at my watch — 8:24 p.m. I hoped it wasn’t going to last too long. First, because, well — duh — no Wi-Fi, and second because it had been in the 90s all week long, and it was still in the 80s and the house would turn into a sweat box without the a/c. And, I was seven months pregnant, so, yuck. The first thing I did was check m...

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“Hialeah Lights” by Jewelyahna Barker

Submitted to Contest #92

Night. No Lights. I couldn't see my hands in front of me. What had happened? How does the power go out in an entire city? I stood there dazed, and confused, trying to see if the was a light anywhere. Nothing. I grabbed my phone from my pocket and turned on the flashlight. No one was around me. Where did everybody go? Why was I the only one on a public sidewalk? Hialeah was always filled with people, after all, it was Florida. I started walking straight, hoping to find someone who could help me. My phone was on four percent, so I couldn't u...

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“Off the Grid” by Tim Benson

Submitted to Contest #92

“Off the Grid” THURSDAY JULY 15th The only indication that there had been a power failure was the sound of the emergency generator kicking on, the soft hum of its engine audible even through the back wall of the house.. When Brad looked at the clock on the nightstand it was blinking at twelve o’clock so he knew something was wrong. Groping in the dim light of one small lamp he found his cellphone. It read 3:20 AM. There had been warnings of planned local brownouts and blackouts due to problems with the electrical grid but he’d expected the...

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Write a story set in a city where the power suddenly goes out, leaving everyone in darkness.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 187 stories

“The Perfect Pitch” by Kelly Elleray

“Fading Embers” by Holly Reynolds

“The Day ” by AVA PHILLIPS

“The Shop On Ironwood Avenue” by O J

“City Blackout” by Bryan Ritchey

“The City of Death” by Lyra Dhani

“Dark Nights in Cincy ” by Christian Hinrichsen

“Gone into the Night ” by Sarah Jovel

“The darkness ain't getting to me” by Ong Teck Wu

“It always just a bag of rice, & she was always out of her mind. ” by Destinee Emenhiser

“Dark on the Line” by Jamie Carrick

“Guest of Honor” by Tyrone Dirksen

“The Dog Days of Summer” by Tricia Shulist

“Hialeah Lights” by Jewelyahna Barker

“Off the Grid” by Tim Benson

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that begins in the light and ends in darkness, or the other way around.

End your story with a truth coming to light.

Set your story in a countryside house that’s filled with shadows.

Write about a character who thinks they have a sun allergy.

Contest #92

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

1051

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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