Start your story with someone who wants to give up on their career right before their big break.

Posted in Short Story on Aug 30, 2024

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✍️ 39 stories

“Dream Big” by Breanna Aguiar

Submitted to Contest #266

This story contains depictions of mental health, substance abuse, and suicide. I always knew my daughter was a creative and dream-driven mind. She had big ideas with no plans, impressive dedication where passion grew, and a heart that would never stop loving. As a little girl, I watched her choose a sparkly purple shirt with pink polka-dot shorts and white butterfly shoes as a first day of school outfit. She'd pick out a blue pair of peace sign earrings and clip her bangs back with her hair in a low ponytail. I'd send her off to play with f...

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“Why do you write?” by Ngozi Essu

Submitted to Contest #266

Why Do You Write? “I’m sorry. Your story isn’t what we are looking for.” Chidinma rubbed her hand under the table. The cafe felt stifling, even though there were four AC units at each corner. She never liked cafes. Why pay $12.30 for a cup of coffee when you could make your own at home? It bothered her that Lindsay's coffee was still untouched. Chidinma felt out of place here—this wasn't her country, so why did she feel like she was begging them to recognize her? “Not what you are looking for?” she stammered—a bad habit. Nesara was a s...

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“Curtain Call” by S. R. Whitworth

Submitted to Contest #266

Hands clenched tight in hair, yanking it out by the root, as Ashley huddled in the driver’s seat of her cramped Chevrolet Cobalt. Her heart raced and sweat dripped down her pits and pooled in the creases of her shirt in the LA heat. Strands of auburn hair wrapped around her fingers and drifted, listless, in the draft from the rolled car window. That audition had been the absolute worst audition of her entire life. It was a miracle the director let her finish. No way she hadn’t completely bombed. Every single day, it was the same thing....

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“Drink Ticket To Paradise ” by Emily Hulslander

Submitted to Contest #266

She couldn’t swallow one more drink ticket, limply passed to her from DoorGuy (name not important OR relevant) . It's soggy paper, carnival ride, raffle ticket blue sitting in her palm, making a mockery of her once again. While she was allowed “one free well drink or beer” her peers had tour buses with riders that included bottles of top shelf liquor for the afterparty,cases of exotic beer, catered food from the best restaurant in that current tour stop city, and if she remembered some of her classmates correctly, probably a few ...

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“The Career Challenge” by Amy Lynn

Submitted to Contest #266

The Career ChallengeChapter 1 “I can’t believe you are finally home!” Cara Donahue squealed with delight. She dropped her oversized purse onto the bed and pulled her childhood best friend into her arms for a big hug. “I have missed you so much!” Amile Anders pulled back to look at her friend, “I missed you too,” she said, her brown eyes locked with Cara’s bright green ones. “We have so much to catch up on. Tell me...

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“Crying in the Food Court” by Jadyn Mccarthy

Submitted to Contest #266

My dad and his 25-year-old girlfriend’s baby woke me up at four in the morning throwing a tantrum, a generous term for those horrifying screeches. As one does, the first thing I did after sighing as dramatically as I could was check my phone for the time, and to my surprise, I had a notification from YouTube. I was so excited I opened it right away: two new comments! When my dad told me he was having another kid, I was able to use it to my advantage and convince him to buy me a real camera to finally start my own YouTube channel. The rule wi...

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“THOMAS CREER AND THE TIME MACHINE” by David Dean

Submitted to Contest #266

Thomas Creer sat at the breakfast table, munching on toast and scrolling through the news feed on his tablet. Armourer and extreme suit designer Thomas Creer, a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Peru, was a researcher into human health, including time machines.Thomas rode in the self-driving Tesla, journeying the three miles to Nazca. His gaze fixated on the car’s screen, periodically it with his damp glove. Streams of vehicles whizzed past, their headlights piercing through the darkness. Amidst the flurry of activity,...

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“Could haver been, Should have been, Never to be” by Chris Round

Submitted to Contest #266

Could have been, Should have been, Never to be 1. Could have been"Happiness is job satisfaction," a mantra repeated yet again as I munch on the Saturday morning muesli topped with blueberries, chopped lady finger banana and topped off with full cream milk. At the same time it is contemplated that truly the Universe has some still unknown gripe with me, a mere Landscape Architect who loves working for the community in which he is based, who has passion about all things green, to enable the happiness of others in enjoying the ...

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“Prestige to Purpose: The Heart's Compass” by Valens Aum

Submitted to Contest #266

Chapter 1: The Corporate Ladder Ethan Walker stood at his high-rise office window, gazing out at the cityscape below. The sun was setting, casting a warm, orange glow over the towering buildings, but the moment’s beauty was lost on him. All he could think about was the upcoming meeting that could change his life forever. For the past decade, Ethan had devoted himself to climbing the corporate ladder at Sterling & Co., one of the largest and most prestigious companies in the country. He had started as an intern, working long hours and sac...

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Start your story with someone who wants to give up on their career right before their big break.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 39 stories

“Dream Big” by Breanna Aguiar

“Why do you write?” by Ngozi Essu

“Curtain Call” by S. R. Whitworth

“Drink Ticket To Paradise ” by Emily Hulslander

“The Career Challenge” by Amy Lynn

“Crying in the Food Court” by Jadyn Mccarthy

“THOMAS CREER AND THE TIME MACHINE” by David Dean

“Could haver been, Should have been, Never to be” by Chris Round

“Prestige to Purpose: The Heart's Compass” by Valens Aum

🌟 Similar prompts

Your protagonist discovers that everything they type comes true. What happens next?

Write from the POV of a character in a story who keeps getting re-written by their second-guessing author.

Your protagonist has the perfect day scheduled — but things don’t go according to plan.

Write about someone who summons the creative muse through a convoluted ritual or method.

Contest #266

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

108

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

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