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

Posted in Short Story on Aug 30, 2024

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✍️ 54 stories

“cursed” by Amanda Stogsdill

Submitted to Contest #266

Cursed by Amanda Stogsdill I slide the manuscript from its hiding place. Staring at the title, I finger its many pages. So much has happened, it seems like a lifetime has passed, instead of months. Would anyone at the agent’s offices read it? Only one way to find out. Pulling out an already-addressed envelope, I place my precious story inside. Sealing it, I almost laugh out loud at the absurdity of the story. Who would believe a word? The truth is stranger than any fiction!****It's a dark, stormy afternoon. As rain hammers on my windows and ...

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“The Murderer Next Door” by Kristy Schnabel

Submitted to Contest #266

(This story indirectly hints at alcoholism and physical abuse.)I’ve been a member of an online writer’s group for three years, and tonight, I’ll be mixin’ the agenda up in a way they couldn’t imagine. We critique each other’s writing to make it better. First, we offer praise such as “good characterization,” “Nice pacin’,” or “Great descriptions.” Then, we go in for the kill: “The story bored me in the middle,” “The character lacks emotion and depth,” or “I didn’t get the endin’.” It can be brutal, but if we can survive the criticism, we end ...

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“The Tale of Addie Rayman” by Adelaide Gravouia

Submitted to Contest #266

I was walking back from the coffee shop, buzzing from the seven shots of espresso I drank after work to help me come up with ideas for the story I was supposed to be writing. I hoped I would go into some weird, caffeine-induced coma and while I was in it I would magically come up with ideas. I’m a writer and I’ve been trying to publish a book but writing at home and only working weekdays at a coffee shop with a minimum wage pay is not a livable situation. After hours of thinking about how to fix this problem, I came up with the idea to enter...

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“A Novel Idea” by Amy B

Submitted to Contest #266

Trigger Warning-this story touches on topics of domestic abuse, violence and death. Sunday Afternoon Dee could barely keep her eyes open. They had officially reached the sandpaper phase where just simply opening them felt like a million little needles being lodged in each one. The tiny blue office felt too cramped suddenly and the tick tock of the broken cuckoo clock was starting to drive Dee mad. Finishing a novel always drove her to the edge. This one was more important than the twelve she had published already. This was her final goodby...

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“To-Do or not To-Do” by William Michaud

Submitted to Contest #266

Another day, another hour swallowed by the subway. Matt felt once more inside the stomach of a giant beast, digested everyday, again and again. He often thought he was in a never-ending simulation. Perhaps he was stuck in a loop. That would explain many things, especially why his career was not progressing so well. At that thought, he reached out for his phone in the breast pocket of his anthracite suit, and opened the notepad application. He created a new To-Do list for the day, one with tick boxes. He always liked the feeling of ticking th...

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“We'll Always Have Stockholm” by Josh Jennings

Submitted to Contest #266

The sheriff is stuck, bleeding in a basement, almost certainly dying. That’s the really big challenge I’m facing, strangely enough. When I think about all the other characters and situations, I don’t get nearly the same pit-of-the-stomach feeling as I do thinking about the sheriff. Will he? Won’t he? He’s been fading for almost six months, I think. It’s hard to tell time here; I try not to dwel...

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“Playing God” by Zea Terry

Submitted to Contest #266

Feeling down and gloomy, I returned home after that damned author meeting. Squealing women, drooling at the sight of me: "Mr. Jones, Mr. Jones, please explain , why Bruno can't be with Kate?" and "Will they get together, in the next part?" Not to mention the nerve-wracking, "Can I get an autograph?"My work was adored by women, who were practically one foot in the grave. Probably , because their only chance at romance ,was dreaming about it, and no man was interested in the charms that had long since faded. Sure, I can still see traces of for...

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“When All Else Fails” by Deni Bee

Submitted to Contest #266

“Who says I can’t write to a deadline,” Joanne cried exultantly, punctuating her delight by typing the last character, of the last word, of the last section of her story, with a flourish. Her roommate, Serena, was busily reading, but smiled and gave her a thumbs up. “Almost done,” she said. “C’mon,” Joanne gestured, grabbing her jacket from the back of a dining room chair, “you can finish proofreading that later. I need to get some fresh air.” Laughing, they pushed the outer doors of their apartment complex open, nearly knocking over one of ...

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“ Sixteenth World ” by Nerin Naidu

Submitted to Contest #266

Sixteenth World by Nerin Naidu It appeared in a tattered old, cardboard box, stained with a rust-red blot along the left side. The contents considered worthless by the cleaning staff who resealed it haphazardly as if the anaphylactic contents would spell their doom if left exposed. It was discarded along the regular route the garbage collection truck took every single tedious Monday morning . Jimbeam, yes Jimbeam as he was christened by his always inebriated mother, pulled distractedly at the left edge of the discarded package. He ...

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“The Author's Tale” by David Newcombe

Submitted to Contest #266

There had been yet another long period of worry, stress, confinement and social withdrawal but all that had now changed, for now. Today was the first face-to-face meeting of the Billabriggy Writer’s Club since the third pandemic. Everyone looked forward to catching up. They were lucky to reserve a table at their usual café as the world emerged from its enforced confinement to re-establish a more normal existence. The neighbouring kerbside cafes were crowded and the roads busy with traffic. Instead of their former spot, the group found themse...

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“Digital Death Notes ” by Vince Roman

Submitted to Contest #266

Inga was a creature of the written word, her soul resonating with each rhythmic patter of the keyboard. The blinking cursor on an otherwise barren screen was like a siren's call, luring her to pour out her deepest yearnings in digital prose. Her fingertips bore hardened callouses from their ceaseless dance across the keys, each letter leaving its mark on her skin like indelible tattoos of every fleeting thought and whimsical fancy. She found herself buried in the drudgery of a thankless job at a company that peddled overpriced paperwei...

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“What Comes Around” by Dan Coglianese

Submitted to Contest #266

Monday, 9:15am. Simone slumped into her cubicle chair with a sigh. Closing her eyes as she lowered her head, Simone rubbed her temples with her fingers. Five minutes later, she stood behind two others in the break room waiting for the Keurig machine. There was only one, and there was no way she was going to settle for whatever slop was in the glass pot sitting on a round warming tin straight out of the 1980s. It...

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“Click.” by Dreux Long

Submitted to Contest #266

Click. The tactile sound of a letter being input on a typewriter. The clicks were what drove Joseph mad being raised by his Grandmother. Joseph’s grandmother was a retired secretary who just couldn’t kick the habit of using her old Olympia typewriter around the house while he was growing up. With his parents killed in a car accident as an infant, his Grandmother was all he knew. But he hated her. And that’s why he hated the Click. One could imagine how the news of Joseph’s Grandmother being diagnosed with dementia would l...

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“Magic Typewriter” by Bracy Ratcliff

Submitted to Contest #266

It was a typically troublesome day at work. Grumpy clients, uncooperative employees, late vendors, and typical tech problems, all just making me wonder, “Is it worth it?” I finally got it all sorted out, tidied up my desk and my desktop, the physical and the digital, and headed for the door. I never looked forward to my commute home, knowing that it was always at least 45 minutes of anxiety, stopping, starting, asking Siri if there was a faster route. Finally pulled into my driveway, parked, headed toward the front door, ...

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“Miranda and Lancelot's Happy Ending” by Mary Botsford

Submitted to Contest #266

Miranda and Lancelot’s Happy Ending &...

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

Submissions are closed

✍️ 54 stories

“cursed” by Amanda Stogsdill

“The Murderer Next Door” by Kristy Schnabel

“The Tale of Addie Rayman” by Adelaide Gravouia

“A Novel Idea” by Amy B

“To-Do or not To-Do” by William Michaud

“We'll Always Have Stockholm” by Josh Jennings

“Playing God” by Zea Terry

“When All Else Fails” by Deni Bee

“ Sixteenth World ” by Nerin Naidu

“The Author's Tale” by David Newcombe

“Digital Death Notes ” by Vince Roman

“What Comes Around” by Dan Coglianese

“Click.” by Dreux Long

“Magic Typewriter” by Bracy Ratcliff

“Miranda and Lancelot's Happy Ending” by Mary Botsford

🌟 Similar prompts

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

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 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: