Write a story about a character who is experiencing glitches in their reality.

Posted in Mystery on Feb 3, 2023

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✍️ 81 stories

“jean jacket” by Cale G

Submitted to Contest #184

jean jacket. plaid hat. boots and more jeans. every day--every single, conceivable, waking day--i see a man dressed from top to bottom in jeans and plaid. he stands on a corner, and it's right across from me. glance through my office's window and you'll catch this man starring in the lead role. he'll stand on this corner--mcdonalds behind him, walgreens to the side, and a money lending service on the other. he'll stand here and stare, watching. always in the jean jacket. always with the plaid hat. always in boots, in jeans, in transfixi...

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“THE HOUSE” by R. J. Garron

Submitted to Contest #184

“Looks like the gig is up for us. This little sprite had a lot of gall. He found the glitch, and we’re at a loss as what our next move should be. Certainly, we can’t bring harm to him, given he’s so young and innocent. But he knows the morbid truth and we can’t sit idly around twiddling our thumbs at such a breach.” “They’re sprites, simulated protocols fer God’s sake!” Xuan was only twelve, but that didn’t stop him from turning every little thing upside down to see what it was, or how it worked. He never sto...

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“Nora” by Maya Trujillo

Submitted to Contest #184

Nora was a regular 27-year-old girl. She had a 9-5 job, her own apartment, regularly hung out with her friends, and even had a boyfriend which she loved very much. She was what came to mind when you think 27-year-old. Everything about her and her life was regular until one day it wasn’t. My head throbbed when I woke up, I didn’t think I drank enough last night to make me hungover, but I guess I did. I have also come to learn recently that my body doesn’t handle alcohol the way it did when I was 21. I went into the kitchen and contin...

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“You Left Me Behind” by Michael Jefferson

Submitted to Contest #184

Dell Creason looks around the infield, focusing on Hobey Clarke, his third baseman. He intuitively knows that in 1974, only four years away, Hobey will die in a skiing accident. Dell wants to tell him, but he believes nothing can change Hobey’s destiny. Dell goes into his windup, striking out his eleventh batter. The crowd cheers, responding to his pitching a no-hitter and a perfect game as well, something an eight-year-old shouldn’t do. Fifteen little leaguers have come to the plate and eleven have struck out. News of what Dell is doing ...

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“The Book of Smells” by David B Fraser

Submitted to Contest #184

It began when I started buying Maurice coffee. Maurice was this homeless guy Donat’s Donuts was always calling in for trespassing. I got it into my head that we might stop trying to arrest him all the time and see if we could reduce the number of visits he made and cut the grief for the baristas there. “Two in mugs, we’ll take some stools at the windows.” Maurice was tall and shaggy, and the shelter said he always washed and put on fresh clothes in the morning and he always really ...

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“The Daisy” by Aza P

Submitted to Contest #184

I'm at a café with Jingyi. I think I must love him because he's the only thing that's ever made any sense to me. Black hair like a crow's; eyes piercingly brown and crinkled at the edges like he's the kind of person who smiles a lot, except that he isn't. He sits across from me with a cigarette between his teeth, almost like he's forgotten it's there at all. I don't like smoke. I don't like cigarettes. But I like Jingyi, so I don't mind. I don't remember how I got here exactly, but it must have been on my own two feet. I ca...

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“Beyond the Whiskers” by Giuliano Olivotto

Submitted to Contest #184

The elder sat motionless, the aged eyes of his gazed into the darkness of the early morning, beholding its reluctant retreat as the dawn of a new day arrived. He had seen so much in his many years: the intensity of fights, the cheerfulness of youngsters, the pleasantness of the pairings, and the laments of death. The morning air was cold and he felt a shiver run through him as he looked out on the world, seeing hazy morning lights start to sharpen into view.The old soul reflected on the memories of times past, of the sounds of gaiety, of the...

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“Lost At Sea” by Douglas Goff

Submitted to Contest #184

The sounds of the broadside were tremendous. All ten cannon blasted into the fleeing ship, Whirlpool; tearing beams, planks, and flesh asunder. Captain Juan Carlos Sanchez signaled his five starboard cannon to return fire, the blasts shaking his smaller vessel.The pirate captain couldn’t help but wonder how things had gone so badly. They had set sail from the island of Corsica just two months before. He and his crew had spent the previous spring raiding several fat European merchant ships. He had used his ill-gotten gains to trade in his slo...

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“Blue Wristbands” by Carina Caccia

Submitted to Contest #184

My laughter is louder than theirs, my smile wider; but I’m the only one who sees the light bend, sees it flicker. It’s another Friday night and the queue stretches out before us, a duplicate code of drunken smiles, smudged mascara, windblown hair: copy, paste, copy, paste, copies. “I missed you,” says Alicia, moving in for an embrace. I see the glitch behind her eyes, feel it in her feather touch as her arms brush over me, move through me, as though we were mere light, flickering dust particles at most. I buffer a moment. “How was Budapest...

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“Modern Dating” by Erin Keagan

Submitted to Contest #184

He always used the app to communicate with the outside world. It was easy for him to chat with women on there, and they always messaged him first. It was because his pictures had been selected with care, to ensure it provided the best angles and features women found most attractive. On his profile, he had a good job listed, he was involved in research science in the computer industry and he checked most of the boxes women on the app seemed to be looking for. The easiest approach was just to ask them questions about themselves. He had found, ...

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“The Visitor” by A Pattenden

Submitted to Contest #184

THE VISITORMother is nowhere to be found, so I take my place in front of our guest and smile as graciously as I can. After the last few weeks of violence, fear and upheaval, this moment of social formality is strangely comforting. I pull absentmindedly at one of my two long braids, which hang over each shoulder. I can’t wait to turn sixteen next week and I can finally wear my hair in a low bun like a lady, like my older sisters who have married and moved away. I think about them often, I do hope they are safe. Sister Brunhilde just...

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“May I Take Your Order” by Indira Gross

Submitted to Contest #184

*Note: This story contains elements of sexual molestation in the workplace, and references the mental and emotional damages caused by such.* Cassie didn't pretend to know much about chaos theory, but she knew enough to know when the universe was trolling her. In the past ten minutes, this was the fourth customer to order their coffee with "three cream, seven sugar". It was a weirdly specific order. Of late, it seemed that strange coincidences like this were more readily apparent to Cassie. It was as if, once she began noticing oc...

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“The Glitch” by Charisma Enigma

Submitted to Contest #184

Evelyn had always felt like something was off in her life. She had a nagging sense that reality was just out of reach, like she was living in a dream. She thought she was going crazy until the glitches started. At first, they were small. She would catch a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye that wasn't there when she turned to look. Shadows would stretch and twist in unnatural ways. But as time went on, the glitches became more frequent and intense. Evelyn sat at her desk, staring blankly at her computer screen. It was just...

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“Any Other Day” by Kat Rose

Submitted to Contest #184

He woke up that day just like any other day. He got dressed the same as any other day, with jeans and the first shirt in his closet. And again, the same as any other day he brushed his teeth. Kit Little woke up like any other day, but this was in no way any other day. Kit went downstairs and grabbed a bowl of cereal. His parents were nowhere to be seen, as usual. They both worked at an office building an hour from the house so they usually left before he even woke up so most of his mornings were spent alone just getting ready for the day. He...

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“The Call of Lawanda” by Frances Hogg Lochow

Submitted to Contest #184

Avi had once chided him about the GPS. “You can’t stand having a woman tell you what to do.” That little remark, made with love and in jest, nonetheless upset Jason. Because his insights about valuing the contributions, intellect and intuition of women and others was part of what had made the two of them wealthy men. So, Jason had grudgingly brought the GPS with him at Avi’s insistence, but he’d avoided turning it on until this afternoon when he realized he’d driven thirty miles in the wrong direction. He had been scheduled to speak at a hi...

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Write a story about a character who is experiencing glitches in their reality.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 81 stories

“jean jacket” by Cale G

“THE HOUSE” by R. J. Garron

“Nora” by Maya Trujillo

“You Left Me Behind” by Michael Jefferson

“The Book of Smells” by David B Fraser

“The Daisy” by Aza P

“Beyond the Whiskers” by Giuliano Olivotto

“Lost At Sea” by Douglas Goff

“Blue Wristbands” by Carina Caccia

“Modern Dating” by Erin Keagan

“The Visitor” by A Pattenden

“May I Take Your Order” by Indira Gross

“The Glitch” by Charisma Enigma

“Any Other Day” by Kat Rose

“The Call of Lawanda” by Frances Hogg Lochow

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone saying “Houston, we have a problem.”

Set your story during a complete city or nation-wide blackout.

Write about someone who has chosen to disconnect and live an analog life.

Write a story where a character has to decide whether to press the button or not.

Contest #184

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

280

Contest entries

121

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: