Make a mysterious message an important part of your story.

Posted in Mystery on Aug 4, 2023

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✍️ 40 stories

“Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing” by Marty B

Submitted to Contest #210

The sound increased in volume each time someone opened the glass door of Joe’s Diner, a cacophonous emphasis to Lois that she had to make a decision. Does she choose the fate of her life, or of the entire planet? She gritted her teeth, and kept working, her small frame flitting between the tables of the small Diner as a hummingbird dips from flower to flower. The notes which make up the song of history are played on the instruments of prejudice and fear. Lois knew this, had lived it as a brown-skinned woman in snow-white Idaho,...

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“Outposts.” by Ken Cartisano

Submitted to Contest #210

“Would you like a brochure? Sure, here you go.”I remember the first time I was abducted. Whisked away at virtual ‘probe-point’ to a distant galactic ‘depot’ called ‘Zudprillipud.’ Why? Well, that’s a good question. It was kind of like sleepwalking except I wasn’t asleep, and I don’t think I was walking. Anyway, they brought me back. Dropped me off in my car. It seemed like ten minutes had elapsed, but when I awoke, I soon realized I’d lost an entire week. A week! And nobody even noticed.I asked Cathy where she thought I was. ‘Out in your boa...

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“Letters to a Dying World” by Jonathan Page

Submitted to Contest #210

"You loved the herdsman, shepherd and chief shepherdWho was always heaping up the glowing ashes for you,And cooked ewe-lambs for you every day.But you hit him and turned him into a wolf,His own herd-boys hunt him downAnd his dogs tear at his haunches."--"Gilgamesh VI" in Myths from Mesopotamia byStephanie Dalley.A mysterious book appeared on the shelves of every bookstore the world over, translated into every language. Its title hinted at our deepest fears: “Letters to a Dying World.” The author, Actaeon, claimed to be an extraterr...

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“[REDACTED]” by C. J. Peters

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #210

NOTE: The following documents have been recovered and organized in such a way as to give a chronological and contextualized view of the events that took place between OCTOBER 19XX – MAY 19XX. The information found within this dossier is accessible only to agents with minimum Level A5 clearance. The contents of this dossier are not to leave Floor XX Room XXX of the facility, be copied digitally or manually, and must be observed while in the presence of an agent with Level C7 clearance or higher. Failure to adhere to protocol will result in im...

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“''Flying Saucers?''” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #210

At first, no one believed it. No one who paid attention to the signals caught by scientists believed it. No one who heard rumours about those signals believed it. And when the press finally took the men and women in lab coats seriously, they still did not believe it. But it was true. Earth had received a signal and it was a message they could all understand: the planet had made first contact with life in outer space. The celebrations began almo...

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“The Messenger” by Debra Snyder

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #210

“Aakash, this just isn’t good enough! This is your third poor evaluation in as many weeks.” Ash studied the cracks on the conference room table. “Yes, Ma’am.” “You’re going to have to re-certify to prove yourself. Re-apply for the phone position, if you want it. As of now, you are downstairs working the messenger streams. I’m sorry, Ash.” Ash trudged down the stairs to the sixth floor with his shoebox of desk sundries. Another high-ceiling room with a sea of tiny computer desks, murmuring voices and clicking keyboards awaited him. A big ...

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“News 41” by John Werner

Submitted to Contest #210

The door swung open as Bobby greeted me, the same way he did every Tuesday. Taco Tuesday happy hour was something I absolutely refused to miss. It ran from open until 5 PM and on days off there was no better place to spend my time and money. I was the first to enter and so had my pick of seats but took my usual spot at the bar across from the tv screen. The bottles stacked upon their risers all glittered in the noonday sun and the air conditioner was pumping to keep the humidity at bay.This little place was an anomaly. The owner, Bobby, was ...

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“Message Management ” by Patrick Druid

Submitted to Contest #210

I had several inspirations for this one. I can't recall all of them.Message managementHarold Sims woke up in his apartment with a headache, most likely caused by spending too many hours on the computer the previous night.The alarm continued to beep at him in the little bedroom incessantly until he finally shut it off and then sat in bed, trying to remember what it was he was so intent on doing when he got up today."It's my day off. I should be sleeping in but...." he glanced over at his laptop in the corner and saw the image still embla...

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“Master o' the Tiger” by Geir Westrul

Submitted to Contest #210

“They are so cute!”“Adorable.”“Look at their little name tags.” Beth picked up the first kitten — gray with white paws, pink nose, and big green eyes. “Graymalkin, is that your name?”Graymalkin mewed.“And this one is called ‘Paddock’,” Mac read the name tag as he picked up the black cat with yellow eyes, black nose, and unusually large paws — each with six black-padded toes.“This one is ‘Harpier’,” said Duncan, holding on to the third kitten — blue eyes, fur nearly all white, except for light brown markings vaguely reminiscent of angel wings...

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“Eep, Opp, Ork, Ah-ah!” by Eric Lizotte

Submitted to Contest #210

It was just another day at work, or at least that's how it started. Consulting work was sometimes a drag, sometimes a joy. In Dubai, it was a little bit of both. Fun to see the culture, try the foods, wander through the parking garage with crazy exotic cars. But like anywhere it had its downsides as well. Extremely hot, occasional sandstorms and less than obvious local laws don't help. Try and find yourself a good bacon cheeseburger and beer there sometime, it isn't easy (or all that good of a burger). But the money is great, and we all go...

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“You've been chosen” by Melissa Behrend

Submitted to Contest #210

“You’ve been chosen” the subject line stated. No punctuation, no specification as to what she’d been chosen for. The sender? A large hardware chain. What in the world would she want them to choose her for? she thought. Nothing, that’s what. She marked the email as spam and closed her laptop, never giving the missive another thought. “You’ve been chosen” greeted her once again the next morning, bright and early. She hadn’t had her coffee yet, so she nearly opened the damn thing without even looking, but then she n...

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“I'll See You Soon” by Victoria Hillis

Submitted to Contest #210

I’ll see you soon.Thirteen letters. Four words. Waiting in the mailbox. No name. Just her address on an envelope holding a thin piece of paper. Small, curly black letters scratched into the middle of the whiteness. While many curiosities of the letter fought for attention in her mind, one, perhaps not so important, stood out. Who writes letters by hand?Who wrote this? Why is this in my mailbox? Or even, What the heck? Would have been better questions asked than the one Lily chose. But alas, being still young and somewhat unconcerned about ma...

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“Giving Back” by Karen McDermott

Submitted to Contest #210

“Whoo! Look at this, Eileen – I’m Marilyn Monroe!”Eileen peered over the top of her glasses and put down the receipt she had been puzzling over. Janice, her eccentric boss at the Rewild Life Charity shop was holding the straps of a dazzling white ball gown up to her shoulders, doing twirls in the back room that barely had space for the staff lockers, let alone such activity.It was January 8th and they’d been inundated, as usual for the time of year, with unwanted Christmas presents. Piles of DVDs still in their cellophane wrappers. Perfumes ...

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“Truth or Lie” by Suzanne Gonsalves

Submitted to Contest #210

“We have splashdown for the capsule,” Mission control reported. “Copy that,” Mary said, looking out the earth-side window as if her former station-mates’ splashing into the ocean could be visible from orbit. She whispered, “Why do I always do that?” to her remaining companion in the International Space Station. “I too look each time,” Vlad whispered back. “You’re cleared for R&R.” “KHARA-show!” exclaimed Vlad. Mary clicked the speaker to confirm and begin their rest and relaxation. “What shall we play?” “As usual,” Vlad said. “Y...

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“Just A Memory” by Isla Stark

Submitted to Contest #210

Sally grimaces as the wall comes crashing down, the edges of the room disappearing in a thick cloud of dust. There’s no turning back now. The old house needs a lot of work and she would have to roll her sleeves up and do some of it herself if she was going to have it finished before winter. Beggars can’t be choosers. She tucks a strand of short red hair behind her ear and begins to shift the rubble. “Hello? Anybody home?” comes a voice from the front passageway. “Back here!” Sally calls. The shape of a tall, stocky figure appears in the k...

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Make a mysterious message an important part of your story.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 40 stories

“Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing” by Marty B

“Outposts.” by Ken Cartisano

“Letters to a Dying World” by Jonathan Page

“[REDACTED]” by C. J. Peters

“''Flying Saucers?''” by Kendall Defoe

“The Messenger” by Debra Snyder

“News 41” by John Werner

“Message Management ” by Patrick Druid

“Master o' the Tiger” by Geir Westrul

“Eep, Opp, Ork, Ah-ah!” by Eric Lizotte

“You've been chosen” by Melissa Behrend

“I'll See You Soon” by Victoria Hillis

“Giving Back” by Karen McDermott

“Truth or Lie” by Suzanne Gonsalves

“Just A Memory” by Isla Stark

🌟 Similar prompts

Set your story after aliens have officially arrived on Earth.

Write about a character who has to grapple with something completely alien to them.

Write a story about a character who is trying to share groundbreaking news, but isn’t being taken seriously.

Write a story that includes someone saying, “We’re not alone.”

Contest #210

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

299

Contest entries

112

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: