An intelligent young girl solves a big problem, but becomes frustrated that no one wants to believe her. Write about what she does next.

Posted in Teens on Oct 25, 2022

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✍️ 15 stories

“Chosen” by Phil Manders

Submitted to Contest #111

Warning: This one is nasty. Grey, lifeless water slid silently beneath her in the darkness. The lights from the village, where she used to play, blurred hazily on the horizon, merging with the inky sky. Her mind, unlike the numb air that clung to autumn cobwebs, had never felt more alive, more awake. The cold ironwork of the bridge felt like it had electricity running through it. Her feet dangling, she slipped off her shoes and watched them drop, drifting away into the night, bobbing in the flow like tiny boats. She loosened her gr...

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“Bottles” by Ruth Zschoche

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #111

TW: violence, animal crueltyThe bottle was a glass Coca Cola bottle salvaged from the barn that her grandfather had kept in a state of quiet disarray.There was a voice in the bottle. It was soft and low.Soft and rough. Sad and mad.Lorna shook the bottle. The voice sped up and there was a short wail. She stuffed the bottle into her faded and slightly frayed backpack and walked to school.Her science teacher at Redhorn High was a tired old man with whiskers and hair where there shouldn't be any. Lorna called him Mr. Miller. Mr. Miller enc...

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“Keira's Invention” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #111

Keira tried to fight the frown that was wrestling for control of her face. She didn’t want to look like a grouchy child on national television. “It’s cute. Really Keira, and I look forward to seeing what you do with your future, but-” Here came the truth following his lie. “It’s just not possible. Trust me, I’ve been in the energy business for decades pushing the technology to its limits,” he stopped to drink water from the table in front of him, “and this just isn’t feas...

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“Saving the World” by Dhruv Srivastava

Submitted to Contest #111

“Go to bed, honey,” her tired mother said, clutching a glass of wine in one hand and an old harlequin novel in the other. Her blond hair was frizzy in the humid night, and she was sweating through her clothes. “But mum-” “Listen to your mother,” said her father lazily. He was likewise pouring sweat in the heat, and didn’t even bother to look up from his TV program. John Rolston was a sad sight - overweight, red-faced, and losing the last bit of hair from the top of his head. His thick round spectacles dug into his pudgy face, and his...

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“Driving Blind” by Robin Owens

Submitted to Contest #111

My Dear Isabella, I’m writing to explain the large sum of money that has suddenly materialized for you and your brothers. Now, you know your grandmother to be a woman of modest means, so I imagine the news of your newfound small fortune has come as quite a shock! To best explain, I should like to share a story I’ve kept largely to myself for the past several decades. New York City, January 1903 Mother (your great-grandmother) and I visited New York each year to escape the frigid lake-effect snow of Buffalo and gallivant through the pre...

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“The Orb and the Peacock Feather” by Elizabeth Fenley

Submitted to Contest #111

The Orb and the Peacock Feather by Elizabeth Fenley “Are you an angel?” The luminescent woman hovering a few inches off the ground smiled. “No, I am not an angel.” Tara frowned, uncertain. “Then, what are you? Or am I dreaming?” “You aren’t dreaming, Tara.” Tara stepped back on the grass of the deserted field she’d never seen before. She’d been on the crowded sidewalk on her way to school. This was beyond creepy. “How do you know my name? Where the hell am I? How the fuck did you---” The...

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“The Five Fortunes” by Leah Bartleson

Submitted to Contest #111

It was a windless day of cloud and rain when the mute girl Milaka began to notice things. She lived alone, on the outside of the village circle where only the noise of the wind, when it blew, could be heard. It was the side where, rumor had it in her village, the winds of change blew. That day, a day of grayness and cheerless chill, Milaka had left her stool and her quiet, lonely meal, and had gone to stand by the open window. For two days she had not moved. Her sisters, Darva and Kaleena, were beginning to worry. “Milaka,” they sa...

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“Ears Open ” by SJ Lemon

Submitted to Contest #111

(TW: Religious zealotry, mild violence, ear stuff)That summer in the small town of Newton Springs, all the babies began crying. Not unusual on its own, except none of them had stopped since. At home, Anna Tuille, age 11, spun the dials on her pocket radio. She wore her headphones snug against her ears as she listened for the anomalous high-pitched frequency that often frustrated her quest for secret stations and extraterrestrial signals. For months on end, two hundred and eighty-three infants—an unprecedented boom in births that ye...

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“where the fox grows ” by Grace R

Submitted to Contest #111

The wind chimes were going at it again. As the wind blew, they crashed feverishly into one another, a frantic dancing orchestra that woke the girl sleeping on the couch. As she blinked her eyes open and rubbed her cheek that had been pressed against a scratchy pillow all night, she glanced around the room worriedly. She began to absorb more sounds; the distant howl of a starving dog, the trees crashing together outside, rain colliding with the windows. With small, cold fingers, she pulled the sleeves of her sweater down to her wrist...

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“Ready or Knot” by Tanae Taylor

Submitted to Contest #111

A war is being fought, treason is being committed, fires are eating the land. But far away from the madness, two young princesses enjoy their youth in a game of hide and go seek. Doris and Harriet, twins the same size are protected from the horrors of war because of their innocence. “Ready or not, here I come!” Doris yells. She begins her search through the castle. Checking every hallway, every room, every balcony. Harriet keeps herself tucked away in the kitchen inside a small cabinet. She knew her sister would never find her,...

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“Liar Sammy's Truth” by Biji Varghese

Submitted to Contest #111

Liar Sammy. She was always Liar Sammy. No one believed anything she said. It was always like that since 5th grade. Her principal's son Jonathan was the first one who called her Liar Sammy. Sammy saw Jonathan stealing money from one of the classmates. She told the teacher who always thought Jonathan was the way to get into the principal's good book. Teacher asked a series of questions in front of the whole class which Sammy did not have answer to. At lunch time, Jonathan stood up on the table in the cafeteria and screamed calling her Liar Sam...

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“Hannah and the Mad Scientist Day” by Joseph Isenberg

Submitted to Contest #111

“C'mon in, Jim. Don't report, don't sit, don't take your coat off, we'll discuss your appointment on the way. We have to move.” “Where are we going, Reg?” “We're off to judge the Mad Scientist Day at Saint Somebody-or-Other's Academy across town. Emm was going to do it. She's come down with creeping crud. She's arranged for the Ministry to send her limousine to collect me instead.” “Just like that?” “You never did marry, did you Jim?” “You forget, Reg, I successfully evaded Emm a few years before you even met her.” ...

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“Painting the Rocks Red” by L.J. LaBree

Submitted to Contest #111

“Mumma! Mumma!” Oh, here we go. It hasn’t even been half an hour, and the Tiny Gremlin is back at it with her screeching for Mother. “Charlotte, honey, Mumma’s talking with her friends right now,” Mother tries to calm the Gremlin down, her hands on each tiny shoulder, yet failing miserably in controlling the incessant bouncing. “But Mumma!” I know how to fix it! I do!” Mother sighs heavily and looks to her friends for aid, but they only offer smiles and giggles poorly hidden behind manicured and polished nails. Lot of good that does, their ...

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“Why Can't Anyone See the Pattern?” by Sophie Smith

Submitted to Contest #111

My parents have always said I’m gifted. That I should ignore what other people say. That they don’t understand. That me being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder at 7 years, 3 months, and 8 days old isn’t a bad thing. It’s my superpower. I can see things that no one notices. I notice the patterns that no one else can see. And still, no one listens. No, no one wants to believe. Would you if a young girl aged 13 years, 7 months, and 11 days solved the biggest problem facing th...

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“Sun Mother's Hands” by Alla Holt

Submitted to Contest #111

Jacqueline Varon’s hands worked feverishly. The light was dim, her workroom saturated with the pines and sepias of the evening gray, but that was not, as it was never, the cause for her hurry. Carefully, quietly, she bent over the uneven table purchased for sewing and kitchen work, but that was instead laden with scraps, screws, gears, bobs and bits. Threaded through her gloved fingers were the wide glassine reels of filament that made up the real cause for her speed. She had to be careful, quiet, as she threaded the ‘plastic’ paper ...

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An intelligent young girl solves a big problem, but becomes frustrated that no one wants to believe her. Write about what she does next.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 15 stories

“Chosen” by Phil Manders

“Bottles” by Ruth Zschoche

“Keira's Invention” by Graham Kinross

“Saving the World” by Dhruv Srivastava

“Driving Blind” by Robin Owens

“The Orb and the Peacock Feather” by Elizabeth Fenley

“The Five Fortunes” by Leah Bartleson

“Ears Open ” by SJ Lemon

“where the fox grows ” by Grace R

“Ready or Knot” by Tanae Taylor

“Liar Sammy's Truth” by Biji Varghese

“Hannah and the Mad Scientist Day” by Joseph Isenberg

“Painting the Rocks Red” by L.J. LaBree

“Why Can't Anyone See the Pattern?” by Sophie Smith

“Sun Mother's Hands” by Alla Holt

🌟 Similar prompts

Set your story in eighteenth century London, including a casual reference to something that changes the course of history.

Write about a character who wakes up in the future and learns that their legacy has outlasted them — for better or worse.

Write about a child who carries on their parent’s work or legacy in some form.

Write about a group of friends who hope to use their combined skills to better the world.

Contest #111

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

124

Contest entries

110

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: