Set your story in a small town where everyone is suspicious of newcomers.

Posted in Teens on Oct 26, 2022

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✍️ 135 stories

“The Witch’s Daughter” by Louise Coley

🏆 Winner of Contest #59

The King sat on his throne, legs swinging in the afternoon sun. The wilderness spread out before him — a boy’s paradise of twisting dirt tracks webbed with ancient tree roots, full of shady hollows and secret hideaways. Behind him, the copse thinned until it met the road that would take you back to the village, but before him was the arena of countless battles, the base camp of every perilous expedition, a land of untold adventure. And — for today at least — it was all his. “Halt!” he shouted. “Who goes there?” The little...

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“Faith” by 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝒶𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒮𝓌𝒶𝓃

Submitted to Contest #59

“......an’ I had to tell him that he wassa beening too uptight, eh?” Jonathan smirked. “Yes, that does sound like him. Really, Alden is really uptight. Oh, that reminds me, I planned a trip to your town. I hope you don’t mind me visiting you and Agatha, old friend?” There was a pause. Then the man named Johnathan spoke. “Yeb, er, I ain’t minding ya! Me and my wife willa seeya ther!” Beep. The unnamed man sat up and rubbed his eyes. He looked around his cozy, but cluttered mess of a room...

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“Werewolves, Vampires, Cannibals, Oh My! ” by Jubilee Forbess

Submitted to Contest #59

"Werewolves."She glared out the window, eyes on the moving van ahead of her."Vampires."Her friend was eating French fries from a KFC bucket, dark blue Converse resting up on the dashboard. They were playing the game where they guessed who the newcomers were."Cannibals." She laughed and smacked her friend in the shoulder. They knew better than to play the game. If the Mayor heard them, he would surely be upset. "Definitely not. That would be a stretch, even for us." She plucked a French fry from her friend's bucket and popped it in her mouth....

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“Where the Devil Hides” by Lynn Penny

Submitted to Contest #59

I could feel their eyes on me, all the eyes of the people we walked past. Our new neighbors were weird, just watching my Mama and me. No one back home would stare at us like this. I don't think that I'm that fun to look at. I asked Mama why so many people were staring at us, but she only told me to keep my voice down."I don't like it here, Mama, when are we going back home?" I pulled on her dress while she was doing something in the kitchen."This is our home, now go feed the chickens and let Mama do her work." She handed me a heavy bag and s...

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“Please Don't Feed the Strays” by Jonathan Blaauw

Submitted to Contest #59

Warning: The following story contains scenes of violence that may be upsetting to a younger audience. Reader discretion is advised.“Dad, are we lost?”“No, sweetie. Of course not.”“Where are we then?”“In the car.” Tom chuckled as Abby rolled her eyes at him from the backseat in a perfect imitation of her mother. Alongside him, Susan was staring straight ahead, a tiny muscle working in her jaw – a clear sign she was annoyed. “Don’t worry, this road has to come out somewhere.”Except Tom was worried. The trip had started well enough. They’d left...

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“Jacob and Samantha (Part 1 Jacob)” by Lauren :)

Submitted to Contest #59

Part 1: JacobDay 1Hello my name is Jacob. Me and my girlfriend just moved to Colorado. I love it so much here! The only reason we moved here for Samantha’s work. I can’t tell but I think she loves it here. Tomorrow we’re going to meet her new boss. She’s so excited! Our house is so big! The back deck looks off a cliff at Castle Peak. It’s so beautiful! I hope this is the place where we start our life with our kids if Sam is willing to have a child. She’s always so busy though.&nbsp...

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“Among the Mango Trees” by Kristin Neubauer

Submitted to Contest #59

When Enrique Otero was five years old, a shriveled old mango seller in Caracas told him about the heat of the Venezuelan savanna."First, the rocks begin to smoke," he said to the little boy, knife flashing through the fruit. "Then your nose begins to burn and you know you've breathed in the hottest part of the sun. It moves through your throat and lungs like a thousand burning needles."Enrique swallowed, not bothering to wipe the mango juice dribbling down his chin."It cooks you from the inside, melting the beards off the men.""Wha...

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“Sea of Roses” by 𝕊𝕦𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕚 🤍

Submitted to Contest #59

“Do you understand your task?” the king asked. I bottled up my fear and bowed my head solemnly. The king nodded, his features relaxing. Even though I had worked closely with him for almost two years, he was still intimidating. Perhaps it had something to do with his cold, blue-gray eyes or his demeaning gaze. Maybe it was how he spoke slowly and softly, making one feel like a child who had broken his mother’s favorite vase. I’m told he wasn’t always like this. He once had a queen and a young son who would have been about my age had he survi...

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“An Isolated Tribe of the Upper Peninsula” by Goblin King

Submitted to Contest #59

Welcome to springfield. The sign's white letters reflected the moonlight off of them and into a gleam of white light hitting my eyes as I passed. The top left corner had lost the green coating that covered the rest of the sign, instead sporting a rusted brown. Unincorporated. As if trying to hide the insignificance of the town, the word hung below the initial greeting with parts hidden behind brush. To the other side of the road, corn grew taller than a person. In the distance a swelling of light escaped the crops’ cover. “Continue on Nor...

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“Cyrano's Nose” by Maya Zauberman

Submitted to Contest #59

Cyrano’s Nose A Short Story By Maya Zauberman Response to Prompt #1, Writing Contest 208 Two women stand near a French window, their noses pressed against the cold glass. Their hawk eyes trail a loaded moving van across the street, watching it stop in front of an old Tudor manor. Their noses crinkle, and their eyebrows rise as they check out a rather flashily dressed female jump out of the moving van, with what might have been her clone. The woman on the left--Sandra the silver haired, and bedangled with ancient Egyptian jewelry-...

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“A Thousand Eyes” by ✯𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫✯

Submitted to Contest #59

Moving isn’t really that fun if you think about it. Well, there was no stopping. We had to go. My family had to move across the ocean, to a place where only the population was approximately a 10,000 people. It was a very small island, according to the web. Though, they were not friendly. Always war or dividing land issues occur there because of some sort of argument all the time. I wasn’t really sure if that place was ever going to feel “homey”. I had a bad feeling, even had nightmares about the place. Gives me the creeps...

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“Mad dog ” by Miles Gatling

Submitted to Contest #59

"That dude's fucking crazy, dog…""I know, did you see the way he flipped that desk? I thought Jimmy was a goner. He shouldn't been talking shit… ""Haha, yeah, that motherfucker's strong as fuck. He works out at my gym.""No way… Teacher lifts, bro?""I'm telling you this guy's something else." He puffed, puffed then passed it. "One time, dude was working out minding his business when Rico, the ugliest meatbag you ever saw steps up to him and demands his weights. My man was eyeballing this cunt like it was nothing; screaming in his face and shi...

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“All in the Sword” by 🐬ᴬᴬᴹᴱᴺᴬ ᴷᴴᴬᴷᴵ🐬

Submitted to Contest #59

“Go on, patrol the area.”“Now?!?!” Grayson exclaims.“Yes now! Come on, there's a reason that we made you the guard.”Grayson grumbles and stomps off, which is easy for him because of the bulky armor he has on."Remember your horse!"He goes to the stables, saddles up his horse, and trots past the restaurant. Hesees her. The same person Grayson sees every day. After he signals to her, she nods and runs off.Five minutes later, she’s beside him, on a horse.“So,” she says. “Today’s the day, huh?”“Yes, it is. And Max’s already mad at me, so don’t s...

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“The Stranger” by Lani Lane

Submitted to Contest #59

The guards had the stranger cuffed and on the ground before he could even say “hello.”“Check him!” barked Rosewell, the lead guard of Rockford, a town hidden deep in the mountains. Rosewell had dark hair that brushed the top of his shoulders and he always seemed to wear a frown.Matthews, Rosewell’s second-in-command, patted down the stranger as another guard grabbed the stranger’s backpack and peered into it. The guard—Bennett—smiled and showed the contents to Rosewell.“Huh,” said Rosewell, staring into the bag. “Get him up.”Matthews grabbed...

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“Queensbrawl, Nevada” by Skyler Woods

Submitted to Contest #59

All eyes were on Naomi and her husband, Jay. Naomi Rose and her husband had just moved into a small town in Nevada called Queensbrawl. There was an unrelenting desert heat in Queensbrawl. Tumbleweeds crossed the roads more than people. There never seemed to be a cloud in the sky and the temperature remained above 90 degrees, even at night. Naomi and her husband liked the town’s quiet atmosphere at first. Everyone seemed hospitable to the couple. But after a day, Naomi and Jay felt like a couple who didn’t belong in their skin. They felt...

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Ended on 23:59 - Sep 18, 2020 EST

Won by Louise Coley 🏆

Title: The Witch’s Daughter

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Set your story in a small town where everyone is suspicious of newcomers.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 135 stories

“The Witch’s Daughter” by Louise Coley

“Faith” by 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝒶𝓂𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒮𝓌𝒶𝓃

“Werewolves, Vampires, Cannibals, Oh My! ” by Jubilee Forbess

“Where the Devil Hides” by Lynn Penny

“Please Don't Feed the Strays” by Jonathan Blaauw

“Jacob and Samantha (Part 1 Jacob)” by Lauren :)

“Among the Mango Trees” by Kristin Neubauer

“Sea of Roses” by 𝕊𝕦𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕚 🤍

“An Isolated Tribe of the Upper Peninsula” by Goblin King

“Cyrano's Nose” by Maya Zauberman

“A Thousand Eyes” by ✯𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐚 𝐋𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫✯

“Mad dog ” by Miles Gatling

“All in the Sword” by 🐬ᴬᴬᴹᴱᴺᴬ ᴷᴴᴬᴷᴵ🐬

“The Stranger” by Lani Lane

“Queensbrawl, Nevada” by Skyler Woods

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a couple who have just moved to a place that one person loves, and the other hates.

Write about a character arriving in a place unlike anywhere they’ve ever been.

Set your story in a place with extreme weather, but don’t use any weather-related words to describe it.

Write a story that feels lonely, despite being set in a packed city.

Contest #59

Enter our weekly contest!

$50

Prize money

767

Contest entries

0

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: