Set your story in a world living with the consequences of a climate apocalypse.

Posted in Science Fiction on Jul 10, 2021

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✍️ 134 stories

“SEEDING” by Kelsey Marlett

Submitted to Contest #90

Someone is unplugging the trees. I got the call this morning. The voice was smeared over the phone, ice black and crawling with static, someone is unplugging the trees, it’s serious, really serious, we need you out there, now. I am standing in a sea of dark metal. The trees go on for miles, following the arch and pull of the mountains, softly humming. Or they’re supposed to be humming. They’re supposed to be flickering light and turning their engines, drinking through their cords, giving us oxygen. But the trees surrounding me are dark. S...

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“Winter's Child” by Phoebe DeNeve

Submitted to Contest #90

It was the year 2134; people were without a care, sitting in their homes and apartments in New York City. There were warnings of war, blood, and death all over the news, but no one listened to them, and prepared for what was coming next. At 11:00am that morning, conflict started; The sun was blocked out by something, and those who had their TV's on experienced static. Moments after the sun was blocked, there was the sound of howling, that was followed by silence, and then was followed by the roaring of an ear-piercing explosion. The war has ...

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“Breathe Easy” by Link Arneson

Submitted to Contest #90

Waterproof mascara, because my eyes would certainly tear up the moment I stepped outdoors. Orangeish foundation around my five o’clock shadow, until I saved up enough money to have it lasered off. Contour some cheekbones, soften my jawline. Pluck and pencil my eyebrows.I painted the lip color on my lips, exaggerating the pout, and counted to twenty, watching the seconds tick by on the secondhand smart mirror. Then I applied the gloss and the setting spray. Count to twenty again, then put on my N95 to test it. None of the makeup came off agai...

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“Escaping from the Wrath of Water” by LM Konkel-Dixon

Submitted to Contest #90

The world was once like paradise, but everyone knows that paradises fall. As humanity rose in progress with industrialization and technological advances, so did the progression in pollution, climate change, and the destruction of the planet. Then the day came that the world hit its last chance and the generation of humanity alive at the time were the ones to pay the price. Oceans rose, and glaciers melted, creating increased water levels that wiped out islands and everything along the coasts. Areas usually hot such as deserts and tropical is...

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“School Haze” by Stephenie Domenico

Submitted to Contest #90

Jeremy slipped on his rubber coat and grabbed his gas mask off the peg by the door then yelled “Bye mom! I’ll see you after school!” before he finished fastening it over his face. “Don’t leave yet!” came the shouted reply. Jeremy rolled his eyes. It was the same thing every morning. He unclipped the mask and waited to see what she wanted this time. His mother came hurrying into the room with his bookbag and Jeremy blushed. He couldn’t believe he almost forgot his bag! “Thanks, mom” he mumbled as she kissed his cheek and she asked, “you...

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“There was only this” by Sam Stevenson

Submitted to Contest #90

I am perched on a sturdy branch high up in a Douglas Fir atop Pine Mountain. The sun is touching my face, and I am in a trance staring into the water that has formed a Bay in the valley below. I watch the circling hawks and turkey vultures, floating gracefully, spiraling with the wind currents. There! That one is Foose. “Foose!” Foose has a bigger body and wider wingspan than the other hawks. His coloring is a light brown. From my perch, I watch Foose hunt a fledgling. He easily catches it with his talons and comes over to my tree, choosin...

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“Fragile” by Cole Lane

Submitted to Contest #90

***********************************************Hey all, this has been a crazy week and I couldn't write until Friday, so this was a quick one. There isn't a lot of action, it is just a simple idea, but my goal with these prompts is to hit the deadline, much like the real world. :)Thank you to the Reedsy community for all the support we all get here every week!***********************************************The thing about flowers is, they are blissful exuberance, even if it is only for a moment. They remind you to enjoy the small things becau...

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“If Only” by Marcia H.

Submitted to Contest #90

He turned to look at her and noticed a familiar sadness in her eyes. He knew that the sadness was permanent. There was never again going to be a light of happiness or a glow of happiness that she once had. It seemed so long ago now. They are now in their 70’s. They are old enough to remember a different world, a world unlike the one they are living in now. The year is 2051. His wife, Sharona, can no longer open the windows in the morning to get some fresh air, there is no fresh air. Everything might look normal. The weather may look ...

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“End of an Era” by Sjan Evardsson

Submitted to Contest #90

It was a warm, bright midnight in December, and time for my shift. The skies on the western horizon were tinged pinkish-orange, as they had been for nearly two months. I had a tall glass of water for breakfast, just like the previous day. Even after being in Antarctica for a year, it still shocked me how clean and pure it tasted. Unlike distilled water, which was flat and tasteless, this was sweet with a hint of minerals. How long can a person last without food, I wondered. A lot longer than they can without water. That was the only thing t...

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“The Bank Raid” by Iona Cottle

Submitted to Contest #90

Freezing water splashes over the bow of the boat and into my face, but I don’t dare take my hand off the side to wipe it away. The biting wind cuts through all the layers of my clothing and rags, and soon my bones are sore from the cold. Hargreaves leans over from where he’s clutching the rail next to me. “Makes a pleasant change, doesn’t it?” he laughs. “A change yes. Not so sure it’s pleasant.” The heat we were trapped in only a week ago seems like a distant memory, but at least my body didn’t ache so much there. I could also see the...

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“Drops of Hope (A Neo Kosmo Story)” by Josh C

Submitted to Contest #90

Squalor. That was the only way Cairo could describe the scene. Even at 11 years old it was apparent. Far from the gorgeous green fields and full, flowing rivers that had been promised, his family had arrived to a barren plain, skulking grey skies, and the only view an enormous concrete wall separating them from the European Federation of States.“Can you watch your brother please? Go meet your father, he should be coming home any moment.” Cairo’s mother called from the entrance of the temporary prefab shelter, one hand on her enlarged belly, ...

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“Thou Shalt Not Kill” by Iskra Lazarova

Submitted to Contest #90

This story has no happy ending. At least not for you. You are the ones that create problems and solve them with war and destruction. Your cruelty towards all you touch, see, breathe, causes horror, scars me, haunts me. Destroys me. You call me beautiful, yet intoxicate me, say you’re grateful for all I’ve created, and you slaughter all the beauty, all mortal souls. You spend millions on killing parasites, still you are the worst kind, disgusting miserable leeches. At first, I was furious. I sent you many signs, warned you. I gave you a ch...

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“Tunnel Rats” by Rajesh Patel

Submitted to Contest #90

The year is 2131. Mankind has destroyed forests, jungles, oceans, and all type of natural habitats. All that in the name of capitalism. In a world where money talks, money walks, and money enslaves, we are primarily producing, consuming, producing, consuming… We have been working more and more to sustain this world economy where the demand never ceases to increase on matters that are not essential. We are working on average 48 hours a week. However, the cost of life keeps on increasing exponentially. Humans have no considerati...

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“Little Things ” by Isabelle Saadatmand

Submitted to Contest #90

“Sarah!” My mother managed to say through her coughing, though her words were muffled by the barrier. “Sarah I can’t breathe! Let me in!” She banged on the walls but the glass is too thick, too strong. I wanted to let her in, to save her, to save my little brother and my father and my best friend and my dog who we had just adopted from the shelter a few weeks back. Tears ran down my face as I pleaded with the others inside to open the door just one last time to let my mother in. The others were far off and ...

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“Smoke the Hive” by S.D. Siegel

Submitted to Contest #90

Dust settled in thick moats on the river, running sluggish like honey. In a month, rain would stop diluting it and it would become the type of mud you could never pull your feet out of without losing a boot. Gwen and Fran rode a four-wheeler over a creaking wooden bridge, electric engine humming with effort. They were coming from the sun-stricken forest into the scrubland hauling dead wood back for tomorrow's smoke. Dirt kicked up behind the vehicle as they sped across the arid landscape. Over mounds of dry grass the only patches of green th...

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Set your story in a world living with the consequences of a climate apocalypse.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 134 stories

“SEEDING” by Kelsey Marlett

“Winter's Child” by Phoebe DeNeve

“Breathe Easy” by Link Arneson

“Escaping from the Wrath of Water” by LM Konkel-Dixon

“School Haze” by Stephenie Domenico

“There was only this” by Sam Stevenson

“Fragile” by Cole Lane

“If Only” by Marcia H.

“End of an Era” by Sjan Evardsson

“The Bank Raid” by Iona Cottle

“Drops of Hope (A Neo Kosmo Story)” by Josh C

“Thou Shalt Not Kill” by Iskra Lazarova

“Tunnel Rats” by Rajesh Patel

“Little Things ” by Isabelle Saadatmand

“Smoke the Hive” by S.D. Siegel

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story that weaves together multiple lives through their connection to a particular tree.

Write a story in which an endangered species (of plant or animal) plays a central role.

Write about a community that worships Mother Nature.

Start your story with someone sitting on a crowded train and end it with them looking out over beautiful natural scenery.

Contest #90

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

814

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: