Write about a character putting something into a time capsule.

Posted in Science Fiction on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 141 stories

“Stars” by Mia Rigini

Submitted to Contest #62

On the day my daughter died, the stars smiled down at me, in their beautiful but sad way. I asked myself how the stars could look so happy on such a sad day, and looked up. It was almost as if they looked back at me, the way a mother looks at her child, comforting, loving, and quiet. The stars kept me going through it all. Even as a young child, I had always loved the stars and how they twinkled in the sky, formed pictures, told stories. I loved how whenever I was feeling down, I could tell myself, “Look, Orion. The stars will come out tonig...

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“A Sky Full of Seashells” by Bianka Nova

Submitted to Contest #62

“Are you ready?” Kate beckoned her daughter to come near. She was sitting cross legged on the turquoise rug in the center of the living room. The floor was covered in books and various household items, and in the middle of it was a fairly big stainless steel box which was currently empty, it’s lid wide open like the mouth of the Cookie Monster expecting to fill its stomach with treats. “Yes, coming—” five-year-old Ashley replied, trailing after her a big colorful fabric bag.“Let’s see. What do you have there, love?” Her mother inquired curio...

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“For Posterity” by JASON PARKER

Submitted to Contest #62

The sweet, coppery tang of blood hit my tongue as I gazed up at my aggressor. A brown leather eyepatch covered one eye but the other was just lovely: verdant green like the Welsh hills. Hair the color of ginger ale framed her face beautifully; a face with the most agreeable smattering of freckles. Her mouth was a shiny oyster: slick and wet in the moonlight. Her nose was that of a Pre-Raphaelite painting: long and slender with flared nostrils. When she exhaled, I half-expected to see steam spit out of her, as though she were driven by a coal...

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“Where Anything Is Possible” by Prachi Kumbhare

Submitted to Contest #62

I scrutinized at the light of the tungsten-halogen incoming right through my room’s window. There was some construction work happening, loud noises of workers and machinery couldn’t enfold the only sentence persisting in my mind saying, ‘You are cured.’ That sentence was a lie. I was resting on my bed, wondering why me? Asking god, folding my legs while the cushions supported my back, ‘What sins did I do in my past life to face this demon in my life again? I thought I was past it two months back. Please, let me die this time. I was afraid to...

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“Never Over the Moon” by Christina Steele

Submitted to Contest #62

The ground rumbled. A plume of moon dust rose in the distance near where Samantha was collecting samples. Ed dropped his instrumentation and headed toward the west ridge of the Sea of Serenity crater. He opened his comm to alert ground control.“Sam—Lieutenant Harris, check-in. Do you copy?”“Captain Seran, this is ground, we are showing sharp spikes in Harris’ vitals. She’s not responding. What’s going on up there?”“Samantha Harris, check-in. Do you copy?” Captain Ed Seran continued toward her last location.“Ground this is Seran. Harris was c...

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“Boxed In” by Lina Oz

Submitted to Contest #62

The young girl sprints through the trees, her long, wavy hair wildly fluttering about her face.“We’re gonna get you! We’re gonna get you!”The voices taunt her, follow her; the phrase repeats over and over, out loud and in her head, a musical canon wrought with terror. She pushes her legs faster, releasing a sob.“We’re gonna get you! We’re gonna get you!”Panicked, she wildly looks around for an escape route. To her left is an open road. Exposed. In front of her rests a school. Too many places to get cornered. To her right sits a dark, quiet f...

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“Deodorant” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #62

At the end of the season, the townsfolk knew that they would have to get ready for the big event. After the first day of autumn, the harvest was in and the nights grew shorter. Men and women prepared for the winter to come (always vicious and long, as usual); children found they had to put away endless numbers of apples, pumpkins and vegetables in their cabinets and larders; grandparents shared stories of their own childhoods over strong glasses of cider and hot chocolate. People in the town greeted each other and smiled at their friend...

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“Endless” by Arham Ishraq

Submitted to Contest #62

I put the shovel down, wiping the sweat from my eyebrow."Well, I guess this is goodbye." I said. The wind brushed against my cheek as I looked at the people I would never see again."We can always call, right?" Alissa said weakly.Alian turned his head away, avoiding eye contact.I looked at them, taking a deep breath. "Actually, I take that back. It isn't goodbye...it won't ever be, because a part of us will always be here, inside this box."Alissa smiled and Alian scoffed."We'll be here forever...in this time capsule."I gave them a last wave a...

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“The Kids Who Found What They Sought ” by Bareera Samra

Submitted to Contest #62

She is panting slightly as she digs the mud by her hands glancing here and there every now and then to check if someone is looking. She digs the mud with her toy spade, knowing that her time is running out. They will be here any second. When there is enough space for the box, she buries it in the mud, her hand carefully patting the mud after hiding. She gets up as she hears footsteps and brushes the mud off her frock. ‘Merritt. Merritt. Where are you?’ She hears her father calling her from somewhere near. She braces herself to meet him, know...

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“Oliver” by Arthur Tiberio

Submitted to Contest #62

A branch of summer gold, cold and brittle to touch . . .The boy sat in the shadow of an elm, a book between his hands and a dog to his right. The dog was more interesting than the book, but the book was part of Education, and thus impervious to the slander of logic. Nevertheless, the day was slowly growing hot, and a lazy breeze rustled through the boy's flaxen hair, making the letters of the page swim together in a medley of impossible ink.A groan rose softly through the leaves. The dog laid his head sympathetically against the boy's lap, s...

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“Different Times, Different Folks” by P. Jean

Submitted to Contest #62

(Write about a character putting something into a time capsule.)Not many of us are important enough to have a real time capsule or to be part of the generation of one. And, oh the headache, of someone who must decide what single thing could define a time, a decade or a generation. That would never be a job for me. But in our own lives, a thread of where and how, or who we were, to maintain some form of continuity. It was a great great great grandmother who started this saving of things and thoughts, complete with sim...

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“Glow Stick” by Ruby Galvez

Submitted to Contest #62

It was the day I was dreading all year, the time of the winter solstice. Festivals have been created around this day when the sun can’t seem to come out. But for me, it’s the day I felt the most like an eggshell that’s on the verge of breaking. Just one more tiny shake, and it would be my Humpty Dumpty ending at last.Since my diagnosis, I waxed poetic about my condition, but Mr. Miller called it a simple case of seasonal affective disorder, like it’s something normal that other bipolar people (namely, his other patients) have overcome. He sa...

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“The Daffodil Dilemma” by Deborah Mercer

Submitted to Contest #62

Author’s Note Just a brief explanation on a minor detail that may confuse some readers - in the UK, Mother’s Day is a movable feast, celebrated on the 4th Sunday in Lent. “Let’s do what I saw on telly, Auntie Marie!” That’s the kind of statement that can be decidedly disconcerting coming from the mouth of a seven year old, especially one like my niece Chloe, who is a sweetheart, of course (though she wouldn’t be a normal seven year old if occasionally other nouns didn’t spring to mind) but has that mixture of a vivid ima...

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“Four Lights” by Courtney Haynes

Submitted to Contest #62

T/W: racial violence, abuse “Class, I am so proud of the enthusiasm with which you all have jumped at this Great American Time Capsule project. You have put maximum effort in both the item you plan to put in the capsule and the presentation for why you chose this item. You have all taken very seriously the preservation of our history to future generations.” His tone changes slightly as he comes to stand right in front of me. “You all have done well with the exception of one person.” He looks down at me expectantly...

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“Woody's Vacation” by Karen McDermott

Submitted to Contest #62

“COREYYYY!”Olivia shut the fridge door with a sigh and listened out for signs of movement from her six-year-old son. Or rather, six and three quarters, as he frequently corrected her and her husband, Jason.“What’s up, Ma?” a tremulous voice asked from the top of the stairs. Corey knew if his mother raised her voice it meant trouble. Olivia enjoyed quiet pursuits, such as meditation and crocheting (“means I can better tolerate your drumming and your Dad’s bedroom DJing practice” she had explained to Corey once).“Care to tell me why my eggs ar...

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Write about a character putting something into a time capsule.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 141 stories

“Stars” by Mia Rigini

“A Sky Full of Seashells” by Bianka Nova

“For Posterity” by JASON PARKER

“Where Anything Is Possible” by Prachi Kumbhare

“Never Over the Moon” by Christina Steele

“Boxed In” by Lina Oz

“Deodorant” by Kendall Defoe

“Endless” by Arham Ishraq

“The Kids Who Found What They Sought ” by Bareera Samra

“Oliver” by Arthur Tiberio

“Different Times, Different Folks” by P. Jean

“Glow Stick” by Ruby Galvez

“The Daffodil Dilemma” by Deborah Mercer

“Four Lights” by Courtney Haynes

“Woody's Vacation” by Karen McDermott

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a character who can suddenly only “remember” their future, not their past.

Write about a character who’s had their future foretold from birth — but isn’t sure if they believe it.

Write about two characters on the verge of a life-changing event, but one has rigged the outcome.

Write about a character preparing to go into stasis for decades (or centuries).

Contest #62

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

620

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: