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

Posted in Horror on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 383 stories

“No Death, No Parting” by Kendi Karimi

Submitted to Contest #92

“Mr. Timba, when was the last time you had a glass of whiskey?” As if he had the right to ask something like that. I knew that behind his desk or cabinet or wall, somewhere, he had a stash of scotch or whatever his poison is, just like I did. From one shrink to another, thanks. The relief in this thought is that it has come to me after I have already finished doing my business. I wash my hands on the sink and walk out of the men’s room. At work, they praise me for my deduction skills, but because I’m still under observation, I can never l...

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“Light at the End of the Tunnel” by Kate Winchester

Submitted to Contest #92

**Author's note: This story can be read as a stand alone, but you'll have more background information about certain events if you read Falling Forward, Falling Apart, and Anything, but Elementary.**Dr. Harding sat at her small wooden desk. It was tucked unassumingly into the corner. A plush dark blue couch commanded attention in the room along with a pair of soft cream-colored chairs. She glanced at her calendar for the day. She had a few appointments scheduled and a couple of meetings. It was going to be busy. ...

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“Step One: Go Outside ” by Mary Sheehan

Submitted to Contest #92

Francie wakes to a half drawn curtain pouring sunlight on her face. Sleepily, she rolls out of bed and pads to the kitchen, skipping around any pools of sunlight streaming in through the slants in the windows. She makes herself a cup of coffee and sits at her writing desk, inhaling the tangy aroma, heady and delicious. She sits with her head nestled in her hands and sifts methodically through her thoughts, watching the spools of steam rise in the air above her cup.We don’t get much sunshine in Ireland, something deep inside her complains. Yo...

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“From darkness to light” by Batsheva Segal

Submitted to Contest #92

It's all just a blur, my head is spinning and my mouth is stone dry. I don’t remember a thing that happened, besides that my mum was shouting my name. I don’t even know where I am, its rather cold so it must be night time or maybe I'm in a northern country. My watch is gone and there are no windows. I'm sitting in a naked room, shivering. My eyes are red and puffy-probably from crying- and my legs are as stiff as a metal rod, I am almost certain I have been paralysed. Someone came in today to bring me food (plus a bucket and some of my...

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“Bound For Evil” by A J

Submitted to Contest #92

They say that light always wins, overpowering the darkness, be it fiction or reality. Everyone glorifies the light, the yang, shunning the darkness and thinking of it as the 'wrong way of life. But without the dark, we wouldn't know of the light. This is my story. A story about darkness. A story where one surrenders to the orphic shadows which our demons thirst for. A story where yin triumphs. * * * In the faraway lands of Galaecia, the kingdom of hope, righteousness, beliefs, and love stood. For all that people knew, merry days...

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“Second Chances” by You'd Think A Writer Would Have A More Creative Name .

Submitted to Contest #92

1215 wordsRated PG; implications of gun violence and substance abusePrompt: Write a story that begins in the light and ends in darkness, or the other way around.Silence for a few seconds. Anticipation. I don’t feel any pain. There’s no blood when I touch my chest. There’s nothing. I am just a blank canvas. I’m only a blob of clay yet to be molded. I am a page, waiting for someone to finally start writing my story. So that’s what it feels like to die.Brown eyes. Chocolate dripped down in sparkling pools. Eyelashes like blades of grass, d...

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“The Light Within” by Shreyans Kanswa

Submitted to Contest #92

Life is a great leveler many would think, but to most, life is just unfair. How would you feel if you are lost in the darkness forever? It’s inconceivable to us but not to Katrina, she was born blind. She didn’t see any light in her life. Her parents took time to accept the fact that she might never see. We always make plans in life, to travel to the most exquisite places, to live free without any precincts, to read books, and to watch movies. But what if you are denied all that? Katrina till she was 16, blamed her fate for the things she ha...

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“The Theatre of the Night” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #92

The darkness is gathering over the city. It is late March, just past the equinox, so darkness comes neither especially early nor especially late. It comes when it is ready, comes at the time when families have already gathered together again after the working day, comes after the lights of businesses and offices, those blocks of fluorescent false clarity, have already faded. For although this is a city, it is a small city, it is only, really, a city, by virtue of the soaring and splendid cathedral on top of the hill. Sometimes, for high days...

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“A BLINK INTO THE FUTURE ” by Shatobhisa Sen

Submitted to Contest #92

Cami stared at him relentlessly while Josh was busy holding hands with someone else. She got out of the class and rushed to the restroom to hide her barging tears. She tried to convince herself not to cry but her inside was screaming like a howling storm. She looked into the bathroom mirror banging her clenched fist rapidly on the sink. - "Why can't I be pretty enough for him? Why did you make me so ugly?" Cami wailed helplessly. She felt a clench in her heart that she used to feel every time she saw him entering the classe...

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“Doesn't take much ” by Scott Skinner

Submitted to Contest #92

TW: mental health California has fifty-three species of mosquitoes living in the state. In the East Bay, in the summer months, the mosquitoes bite quite often. They float around at eye level, looking for an opportunity to strike, and if they’re not feeding, they’re hiding, watching you. It’s interesting to observe them; you learn that mosquitoes can die from their mistakes just like anything else. George watched one while he was in bed, lying on his side. The mosquito was one of the big ones; its legs and siphon were so long that it l...

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“ Anne-Marie Fleming's Final Days By Jade Stouffer” by Karri Stouffer

Submitted to Contest #92

Dear Journal, 10 days I went to the doctor today to find out I have stage IV cancer. Just two months ago I went in and it was stage II. When I was young I faced cancer, and they did chemo. I thought I defeated cancer for good, but stage IV... I am a goner. I was supposed to be Anne-Marie, the girl who overcame cancer twice. The doctors tried chemo, radiation, you name it. Nothi...

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“Night Owl” by Rebecca Lefkoff

Submitted to Contest #92

Night Owl I don’t sleep much; never have. I remember Momma telling me to just close my eyes. “Little girls need their rest,” she would whisper as she slipped from my bedroom. But I would lie in my small canopy bed staring at the lilac ruffles above me and cry in frustration because I could not obey her. Eventually I realized that it did not matter, sleep is not all it is cracked up to be. Tonight, instead of tears of frustration, I lay listening to the night sounds of my house. Ben, my husband, lays next to me. As usual, he has twisted...

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“Pitch Black” by Marie Bishop

Submitted to Contest #92

*Warning* slightly rude joke towards the end. The gentle drip, drip drip of the liquid was the only sound in the room. Neil pushed his glasses up and leaned down to look at the amber liquid collecting in the bottom-most flask. “Experiment 345” he mumbled to no one. Every failed experiment had been another step towards a cure. He had to find a cure. Time was running out. Leaving the liquid Neil circled the small clean room. Five months he had been locked down here, while above him a virus like no other savaged the land. Families turning on ...

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“Leave A Light On” by Zoey Hailey

Submitted to Contest #92

*Zoey’s Note* Hey guys! So for this week’s Reedsy, I’m going to be discussing a topic that may be a little bit darker for most of you: depression. I’ve been coping with serious mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, social anxiety, and trauma since fourth grade, and I feel like I just need to spread awareness. This story is meant to help others who feel like they have nothing to live for and no one to turn to to assure them that they are not alone; no one is. At least one person is experiencing something similar t...

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“Love in the Darkness” by Katie Ingold

Submitted to Contest #92

***Warning: Some adult content***The whisper of skin against silk, a quiet gasp, a soft sigh. I listened for what I couldn’t see. Darkness surrounded me. A familiar friend—one who visited me often. The one I looked forward to as the blackness covered me. The one whose silky touch was nothing but a figment of my imagination. Or so they said.Every day, I watched the clock tick the seconds away. I willed the sun to move faster across the sky and lower behind the edges of the landscape. Waited for the last ray to wink out of existence and hide u...

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

Submissions are closed

✍️ 383 stories

“No Death, No Parting” by Kendi Karimi

“Light at the End of the Tunnel” by Kate Winchester

“Step One: Go Outside ” by Mary Sheehan

“From darkness to light” by Batsheva Segal

“Bound For Evil” by A J

“Second Chances” by You'd Think A Writer Would Have A More Creative Name .

“The Light Within” by Shreyans Kanswa

“The Theatre of the Night” by Deborah Mercer

“A BLINK INTO THE FUTURE ” by Shatobhisa Sen

“Doesn't take much ” by Scott Skinner

“ Anne-Marie Fleming's Final Days By Jade Stouffer” by Karri Stouffer

“Night Owl” by Rebecca Lefkoff

“Pitch Black” by Marie Bishop

“Leave A Light On” by Zoey Hailey

“Love in the Darkness” by Katie Ingold

🌟 Similar prompts

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.

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

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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