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

Posted in Short Story on Aug 30, 2024

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✍️ 40 stories

“Ring of Love” by Brigid Hanes

Submitted to Contest #266

Brian stood at the altar awaiting his bride’s arrival with his 5 groomsmen behind him; Jason, Michael, Jaxson, Lennon, and Craig. They all had several drinks before the wedding rooting on Brian and giving him courage. He was occasionally swaying slightly but still managed to hold himself straight. On the opposite side, in the Bridesmaid area, there were Jenna, Alyssa, Terese, Belinda and Christine. Of course Jenna, Brittany’s sister, had to be the maid of honor. She threw a fit until Brittany agreed, but this was supposed to be Brittany...

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“The day my world collapsed” by David Nutt

Submitted to Contest #266

The day my world collapsed I must have been six years old when early one morning my mother came into my bedroom room with her eyes shedding a stream of uncontrollable tears. Her body was shaking with emotion. She grabbed me and held me close, planting kisses on my face and hair. It was several minutes before she said. “He left”. At first I had difficulty in understanding what she meant. Slowly I realized she was talking about her husband, my father. “What do you mean he has left”. “ My darling, he has abandoned us”. I have a younger sister. ...

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“A Mass Anomaly ” by Thomas A

Submitted to Contest #266

“Why do we have these weekly gatherings?” the man asks.“Morale.”“It’s not like we’re not going to get things done. We're way ahead of schedule.”“It’s a few minutes out of the start of your day. Relax, Ben.” She replies. They walk through a sleek, 3D-printed corridor.“Sure. You’re rota’d off?” he asks.“I have a few things planned after this.”“Like?”“Taking a ride out to climb the caverns in Akkarion.”“Oh, nice. The cave systems?”“If I have time, I have a massage booked later on.”“Wow. You really are making the most of your day off.” The reddi...

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“Climb Every Mountain” by Odiseo Quintin

Submitted to Contest #266

A travel day customarily launches an out-of-town vacation week. When everything goes according to plan, our transportation connections line up perfectly and we easily leave behind all the workplace stresses. Having said that, reality may very well write for us a somewhat different story. These “vacation hiccups”, however uncomfortable, can provide for an adrenaline rush that multiplies the chances that future memories of this time away never fade. The basis of excellent storytelling is exactly this phenomenon. Having retired in Mexico a doze...

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“Panic ” by Hannah Abrams

Submitted to Contest #266

Today was Ky's day off from work, and he was determined to make the most of it. He had a perfectly planned out day in mind. He'd wake up at 7, get his daughter, son, and wife up after making the most exquisite breakfast consisting of restaurant-quality chocolate chip pancakes, bacon, and eggs. His wife would kiss him and tell him all about how not even Gordon Ramsey could cook a pancake to perfection like he could. His children would hug him and they would have a pleasant morning. The...

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“Gus's Party Clothes” by Gil Harris

Submitted to Contest #266

GUS’S PARTY CLOTHES by Gil Harris“Looks like a great day. Fog has blown away. Sky is blue. I’ll do a few things around here until lunch time, hit the food truck downtown for some tacos, then come back and meditate. Need to recharge my brain after last night’s partying. Then an afternoon body surfing at the Main Beach.” Gus told himself after sleeping in and standing on the porch at 10:00 on a Saturday morning. Last night had been a late one. He and his friends...

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“Close Enough” by Search Bar

Submitted to Contest #266

“You haven’t been yourself lately.”“I know.”“Why?”“I don’t know.”“Oh, that you don’t know?”“It’s stupid.”“Is it? Try me.”“I guess I’m scared.”“Scared of what?”“Meeting you…?”I clenched my teeth. I didn’t realize how it sounded before I hit send. “Sorry, that sounds messed up.”“Very messed up, but I get it. I’m not a catfish, I promise. Haha.”“I’m so relieved,” I texted back with a sigh.Long-distance relationships can be…complicated. Sometimes, they work out, and sometimes, they do not. Sometimes, they stick, and sometimes, you grow apart and...

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“Dust to Dust” by Bailey Skater

Submitted to Contest #266

Note: This story contains use of tobacco and also the death of a partner. “From the day I met you, I knew you’d be mine.”The words I see on the page of what would have been my wedding vows to you. I feel my eyes well up as the sheet of paper gazes my hands. Seeming to find every crack, crevice, and seem in my hand as I try and comprehend what has just occurred… that was until the day you left me.September 5th,2024. The day that will always bleed into my mind. Sitting on my grey concrete slab of a patio that my landlord considers a “considera...

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“A Perefect Day” by Tom Roselle

Submitted to Contest #266

“Ah, fer fook’s sake!” I shout. It was me first day off in ages, and I’d only gone and forgotten to turn the bladdy alarm orf, hadn’t I? Fookin dick’ead. My one chance to lie in, and I had fooked it. Dun’t matter, coz I can sleep anywhere, me. Which, y’know, I do, but daft twat hit ‘snooze’ and not ‘off’, din’ I? So it only ‘appened again. Well, y’know, no goin’ back ter sleep now, too pissed at meself, so up I get. Nout a good, strong brew can’t fix. I get up, stretch, scratch me balls, take a good, long piss and feel how fuzzy me ‘ead is f...

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“A bowl of oatmeal and a tiger” by Randy Miller

Submitted to Contest #266

“Sunny and warm with a high of seventy-one degrees,” the announcer said from the radio. Rodger turned the knob and shut it off.The car was packed, and he was ready to go. A perfect day for fishing. He had waited months for time of from work to take this day. Nothing would stand in his way, now.He pulled down the wide brim of his straw hat, savoring its familiar weight as he swung open the front door. The sun greeted him with open arms, a gentle warmth draping over his shoulders like a soft blanket.Above, the sky sprawled in a brilliant blue,...

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

Submissions are closed

✍️ 40 stories

“Ring of Love” by Brigid Hanes

“The day my world collapsed” by David Nutt

“A Mass Anomaly ” by Thomas A

“Climb Every Mountain” by Odiseo Quintin

“Panic ” by Hannah Abrams

“Gus's Party Clothes” by Gil Harris

“Close Enough” by Search Bar

“Dust to Dust” by Bailey Skater

“A Perefect Day” by Tom Roselle

“A bowl of oatmeal and a tiger” by Randy Miller

🌟 Similar prompts

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

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.

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: