The Best Bedtime Short Stories
Bedtime short stories: likely our very first gateways to literature. You drifted off to The Three Little Pigs so many times as a child, that you canât even remember how it ends. Then there was Goodnight Moon and Where the Wild Things Are, and the years you spent devouring Roald Dahl's books under the covers with a flashlight. Now, you might make your way through a novel in bite-sized chunks, but really youâd quite like to go back to the days of bedtime short stories. A golden nugget of a story, that doesnât ask too much of you: no names to remember the following night, no rambling plotline to keep track of. Wouldnât that be nice? Well, youâre in luck! Short bedtime stories for adults are having their moment, and we are here for it!Â
Looking for a bedtime short story to curl up with?
This is the place to be! On this page youâll find all the short stories submitted to our weekly writing contest that the authors have helpfully tagged as âbedtimeâ stories. There are no rules as to what constitutes a bedtime story, and these stories have been written in response to a huge variety of creative prompts, so donât worry: youâre not in for a snoozefest!Â
Whether youâre looking for short bedtime stories for kids, or something for yourself; stories to help you dream sweetly, or (for whatever reason) scary bedtime stories to keep you up â youâll find it here. Weâve featured all the submissions that were shortlisted by our panel of judges at the top of the page, so you know where to find the best of the best. And donât forget that you can enter Reedsyâs writing contest to be in the running for a cash prize â and a shot at publication in Prompted, our new literary magazine!