Write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family’s very old computer.

Posted in Mystery on Feb 2, 2024

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✍️ 37 stories

“Non-Fan Mail” by Alexis Araneta

Submitted to Contest #236

Dear Ms. Nova,Congratulations on 30 years in the music biz! I’m very happy you’ve lasted this long in the industry because your music really is awesome and you deserve the longevity.You’ve probably heard this a lot, but my mom Donna and I are huge fans of yours. We’ve bought all of your albums: from your debut album “Dreams” to the latest one, “Higher”. Any time we’re together, we just have to play one of your albums. Your music is literally a form of bonding for us.I’ve included a photo of you during your last concert here in our city, and ...

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“They Were Young Once” by Christina Reynolds

Submitted to Contest #236

As the fourth son of a fourth son, by the time I met Pop Pop, he was a fragile old man, bent at the waist, eyesight and hearing failing. My memories of him are limited to the seven years he and I occupied this earth together, but I remember very clearly the nights when he would sit by my bed and tell me tales of the Old Country in a thick accent and broken English. I make this point because it’s with this memory in mind that I tell you about the day I found his old computer, which housed treasures from the past and secrets I'm sure he though...

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“My Father's Last Floppy Disk & Testament” by Robert Egan

Submitted to Contest #236

Merv does the finger thing and mouths "right friggin' now" again. He's wearing a camouflaged suit to my father's funeral, and it's not helping him blend in.I'm at the head of a line of well-wishers and condolence-givers, mostly little old ladies dressed in black, so I ignore him."Psst!"The line of old ladies turns to stare at Merv."Ahpsst!" He tries to pass his earlier psst off as a sneeze then strolls too casually out of the reception room."Merv has something to tell you, dear," says my mom, standing beside me."Do I have to?" I mutter.My mo...

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“In Memoriam” by Marty B

Submitted to Contest #236

***themes of violence***Ron’s knee bounced up and down, banging against the small antique desk over and over. The once orderly desk had papers torn and disheveled, drawers yawning open as if screaming at the assault.'What's that noise, is someone at the door?” The small voice behind Ron added to his impatience.“No Ma, it's just Dad’s stupid desk. God, what’s the last time you logged into this thing?”He looked again at the ancient computer, reloading software updates to the current decade. The hourglass graphic mock...

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“The Book of the Duchess” by Story Time

Submitted to Contest #236

In an untitled folderRight on the desktopI found my mother’s poetryThere was a hesitationIn choosingTo read itMy mother spent her lifeArranging photographsOn a mantleThat was never dustedShe held sentimentFor torn t-shirtsBroken VCR’sDented cans of crinkle-cut carrotsIngredients for a peach cobblerShe’d never makeEverything meant somethingExcept for those closest to herWe were unableTo carry meaningBecause we wouldn’tStop movingDespite our best effortsWe could not empty ourselves outSufficientlyAnd so placing thingsWithin usWas too complex a...

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“Southern Comfort” by Katharine Widdows

Submitted to Contest #236

I unwrap the keyboard my grandmother once fell asleep on after she'd drunk a large glass of Southern Comfort, thinking it was low alcohol ginger wine. It's not on the antique desk it had rested on then, it's not in her cosy lounge, or even in her half-timbered house. It's not where my grandfather had found her, slumped over her work, head spinning, eyes closed. He’d laughed when he'd told us how the square shapes of the worn keys had imprinted themselves into her cheek and chin. He'd chuckled about how her glasses were skewwhiff and her frin...

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“Magic 8 Ball” by Jess Driscoll-Ward

Submitted to Contest #236

The Windows logo appeared on the screen. The multi-coloured logo that looked wavy and in motion. The old Windows logo. Riley Lord hadn’t seen it for years. He used to use this computer to play Minesweeper after school. Did anyone really know and understand the rules of that game? He laughed at his eleven year old self repeatedly playing a game he didn’t understand. You took what you could get when it came to technology back then. He couldn’t imagine any eleven year olds nowadays playing a game they didn’t understand because it was all they c...

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“Scar House” by Martin Marriott

Submitted to Contest #236

When I was a kid, I thought Scar House was a colossal place for two people to live. In my young mind, it was not only the grandest house in Cape Argo but also in Cedar Ridge County. Scar House was a testament to old American luxury. The hallway was spacious and welcomed visitors with warm, ambient lighting and sleek, polished floors. Each of the four bedrooms was a sanctuary of comfort, featuring large windows that bathed the room in natural light and bespoke wardrobes that added to the bygone opulent American luxury. The heart of Scar House...

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“A Splash of Lemon” by Liz Grosul

Submitted to Contest #236

TW: Mentions body weight and dieting, body shaming, disordered eating.Mother had an affliction since I first started remembering things. She never said anything about it, but I saw the shadow whip behind her eyes. The stash packs of cigarettes on the counter didn’t alarm me until I graduated middle school and our citrus collection in the cupboard seemed like something all families had in case of off-chance nuclear warfare or sudden sanctions on Florida. What gave it away was the frenzied typing. Mother wasn’t a secretary. She was a lawy...

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“TAMI” by Patrick Druid

Submitted to Contest #236

TAMI The little one bedroom trailer sat on the edge of a forgotten Hill that was near a landfill in the western part of the county. The owner, one Doug Mason had purchased the plot of land and the trailer at a rock bottom price several years ago much to the dismay of his family who believed that this trailer idea was a death trap waiting to be sprung by some unwitting soul, like him. Benita Mason sat in the passenger seat of her brother's beat up Chevy and looked out the front window at the little trailer and slow...

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“SETI” by Ralph Aldrich

Submitted to Contest #236

So sad. Mom has passed away. Cancer. I have to empty out the house so I can sell it. I hate going through so many memories, but I will have to. I’m going to have an estate sale, so I must prepare for it. The saddest part is that in 1995, Dad just up and disappeared. Mom came home from shopping, and he was gone. No note. No sign of being unhappy. He just left, and we never heard from him again. For the rest of her life my mother never got over that loss. She had hoped...

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“The Next, Next Level” by Bookworm TheReader

Submitted to Contest #236

I slunk up the old attic stairs. Every time my feet (softly) hit the partially disintegrated wooden planks, I cringed, listened for a minute, and continued with my delicate charade once more. Looking back, it's a wonder I was ever able to reach the top. My parents were asleep in the room directly below, none of my steps were as quiet as I deluded myself into thinking they were, and just by judging my frame, you could tell I was very ill suited to be sneaking anywhere. I looked eighteen, but was really three removed from that number, was th...

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“Secrets” by Eleftherios Konstantinidis

Submitted to Contest #236

He’d just returned from college for summer holidays, and after having dinner and enjoying the company of his parents and younger brother, Harry lay down in his bedroom. He had left his computer and PlayStation 5 back in his apartment in Leeds, where he had moved in September to study Economics at Leeds University. Right away, he felt remorse for leaving them behind, as he realised his parents' house had limited options for entertainment. To make matters worse, his childhood friends, who had also moved to other cities to study and work, would...

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“A Rhapsody of Willows and Weeds” by Liam Welch

Submitted to Contest #236

Warning: This story contains death and the use of tranquilizers. A Rhapsody of Willows and Weeds By Liam Welch Chapter 1 My vision slowly came back as I awoke in the dimly lit dinner. “Hey!” Said the man in the clean Italian suit across from me at the booth, “You’re finally up. I didn’t want to knock you out but you are quite a feisty one.” &nbsp...

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“Echoes of Dust: Unearthing the Past in a Digital Age ” by Gail Ormsby

Submitted to Contest #236

The year was 2124, and Anya was on a quest to uncover the secrets of her family's heirloom, the "Personal Computer." The ancient device was said to have accessed a vast digital sea called the "Internet," a concept archaic to Anya's generation. She had spent years deciphering the device's password puzzle but had yet to find a way to do so. Years of Anya's tinkering had yielded nothing. Deciphering ancient manuals and scouring virtual archives, she'd pieced together fragments of the password puzzle: a childhood nickname, a beloved pet's name, ...

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Write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family’s very old computer.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 37 stories

“Non-Fan Mail” by Alexis Araneta

“They Were Young Once” by Christina Reynolds

“My Father's Last Floppy Disk & Testament” by Robert Egan

“In Memoriam” by Marty B

“The Book of the Duchess” by Story Time

“Southern Comfort” by Katharine Widdows

“Magic 8 Ball” by Jess Driscoll-Ward

“Scar House” by Martin Marriott

“A Splash of Lemon” by Liz Grosul

“TAMI” by Patrick Druid

“SETI” by Ralph Aldrich

“The Next, Next Level” by Bookworm TheReader

“Secrets” by Eleftherios Konstantinidis

“A Rhapsody of Willows and Weeds” by Liam Welch

“Echoes of Dust: Unearthing the Past in a Digital Age ” by Gail Ormsby

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don’t recognize.

Write a time-travel story where a character from the present finds themselves in the 80s or 90s.

Write a story about a grown-up sharing their favorite childhood video game with their child.

Write about a character who isn’t nostalgic about their past at all, and show readers why.

Contest #236

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

184

Contest entries

83

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: