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Looking for a steady supply of coming of age short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

6360+ Coming of age Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. No matter how old you are, there’s just something inherently relatable about coming-of-age tales. Discover the best new coming-of-age stories right here!

Coming of age Short Stories – Page 2 of 425

Buffalo Nickel

Submitted to Contest #295

Buffalo NickelGary GrissomI was painfully shy and had very low self-esteem when I was in high school. For example, when I would get up the courage to phone a girl, I would stutter as soon as she would answer and say hello. I would say “Th-th-this is-is-is” and then I would hang up before I would say my name. At least the girl didn’t know who I was, I would rationalize. After doing this several times, I finally confided to my big brother, Lee, and he suggested that I take a deep breath and then try scatting jazz notes while I dialed the girl’...

8 likes 4 comments 4
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Passed on to Another

Submitted to Contest #295

My Uncle Charlie was a great writer, my favourite author by far. His stories were brilliant and generally amazingly imaginative. He was the one who inspired me to become a writer too, not anything my parents wanted for me as a career when I was a teenager and they wanted me to work my way to a steady, reliable job like the one my dad had. And that was not just from reading his novels, short stories and poetry. He would sit down across from me at the living room table of his apartment near where I lived and tell me how muc...

4 likes 0 comments 0
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The Hidden Portals of Love and the Crystals of Light

Submitted to Contest #295

As the wand circles and swirls overhead, a lightly held rose quartz crystal creates a trail of stardust and luminous patterns pervading the dawn as it illuminates tiny specs of magical creation, cleansing, clearing and purifying the energy body of negativity for the day ahead as its protection and gentleness is called forth with unconditional love. A small yet sacred task performed amongst the few and one which requires mindfulness and discernment at its foundation. A new way of life is not to be taken lightly, a privilege not afforded to ma...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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We're All Excited, We're All Gonna Die

Submitted to Contest #295

Scotland’s sister had died sixteen times between the ages of twenty-two and thirty-seven. She had a habit of faking her own death only to reappear like Huckleberry Finn a few months later. The explanation was always art. Her art. The first time she did it, Scotland screamed at her. He had grieved. He had mourned. It had been two hundred agonizing days. She was his only family. He thought he would spend the rest of his life alone. “But don’t you see,” she said, “You are alone. We all are. I was just trying to remind you of that.” She told him...

28 likes 14 comments 14
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Applebea in September

Submitted to Contest #294

September 1stDear Miami,I saw a woman speed out of a parking spot today. She slammed her foot on the pedal, jammed the brake, and shot forward—all while another car was waiting for her to pull out! It was the boldest, most confident thing I've seen since you died. I wish I could do that, but I chickened out when I tried to copy her. I thought someone (a child, perhaps) was hiding in my blind spot. September 2ndDear Miami,I still haven't made any friends. The campus is so large that I can never find a moment to speak to anyone, and by the tim...

5 likes 2 comments 2
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The Jinxing Hour: Teddy's Version

Submitted to Contest #294

It started with an Eggo waffle.A perfect toaster waffle. Golden, crisp, flawless.The last frozen Eggo in the box, rescued from the depths of an icy, neglected freezer drawer—beneath the abandoned bag of tater tots and the mystery Tupperware no one dared open.A syrupy masterpiece, steaming on a silver platter—aka a well-worn, plastic Toy Story plate. Buzz and Woody—barely visible now—scraped thin by years of utensil scratches and dishwasher cycles.Across the table, Annie and Grace readied for battle.Twin tornadoes in glitter scrunchies.Forks ...

36 likes 37 comments 37
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THAT

Submitted to Contest #294

Subject: Well, I Did a Dumb ThingHey Sarah,So, I got a traffic ticket last week. Yeah, I know—classic Ethan move. I was rushing to work and didn’t notice the speed limit change. Long story short, I’m now the proud recipient of 10 hours of community service.The worst part? I have to spend those hours visiting elderly patients at a hospice place called Arcturus. I mean, I’m all for helping people, but I’m not exactly the “chatty with strangers” type, as you know. Wish me luck—I’m going to need it.Anyway, how’s life on your end? Tell the kids I...

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Learning the Ropes

Submitted to Contest #294

A simple misunderstanding brought us together on a warm Friday afternoon in September. My roommate, Alex, and I were kicking a ball around on a plush grassy area in the city park across the street from our dorm. Alex sent me a bouncing pass that I returned with a looping ball over his head. He turned his back to me, took two quick steps, jumped and executed a perfect bicycle kick to shoot the ball back over his head at me.  I was impressed and surprised. The ball came back quickly, to my left. I kept my eye on it. I wanted to catch it b...

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Hard Dreams

Submitted to Contest #294

There is something in my intestines that feels weighted. This winding gut knot presses against a cradle of flesh that holds it inside me. No matter how I adjust myself it remains, just barely tolerable, thrashing and trying to escape. It feels like something I shouldn't be aware of, the kind of thing your body isn’t supposed to let you know you feel. It distributes itself along my sides, sloshing around inside my guts as I toss and turn. Uncomfortable memories of videos a vegan friend showed me flash in my mind. Cow guts rolling out onto a d...

2 likes 0 comments 0
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FUNNY UNCLE

Submitted to Contest #294

[Some folks might be sensitive to a relationship that goes where it shouldn't. But then, that's kind of the point...]“Just say the word,” Uncle Randall tells me, with all the weight of his judgeship behind him—but something stops me. I know he has the power; I’m confident that he can help me put a certain creep behind bars, if he thinks I want him to. And as a budding prosecutor, of course I want him to. But something stops me. I mean, something besides asking my uncle to do—just for me—a quasi-legal thing.Uncle Randall is what people winkin...

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How fragile we are

Submitted to Contest #294

‘What time is it?’ I’m quickly rummaging through my rucksack to check I’ve remembered all my essentials. Looking at my watch, I’ve probably got ten more minutes.Day wear. Check.Evening wear? Mmmm, maybe I can buy something there? Wherever there is? A treat to myself for finishing my contract. Or maybe this daywear dress with this cardigan. That’ll do. Check. Pyjamas. Darn it, my rucksack is too small. Check.Copy of captain Corelli’s mandolin. Check.Pants. Check.Toothbrush. Check.Make up. Check.I think that’s it. Will take out the pyjama...

21 likes 13 comments 13
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The Hill

Submitted to Contest #294

The sun was a hot stone in his eyes for a brief moment, even at this early point in the morning. He had just climbed up the small hill to the place where he was supposed to wait. It was always at this same time; always on a weekday. He was no longer new to this, but the light and the heat left him slightly dazed and sweaty at the same spot on the sidewalk where he would always have to wait. And here he was, waiting again for the exact same thing. After two weeks, he had some thoughts about all of this, even though he woul...

15 likes 4 comments 4
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After School Hours

Submitted to Contest #294

This is going to be a very interesting year. Just minutes ago, I had tripped over my desk while rushing to leave class. A boy had been at my side to catch my fall, his teasing smirk never fading as he playfully twirled me until I couldn't help but laugh. All of a sudden, he left the classroom, pressing a piece of paper in my pocket. He kissed my hand and left, telling me that I should text the number when I get home. Why would someone like him give someone like me his number anyways? As I walk out of Mr. Sutton’s room, I am confronted with...

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Sea and the Moon

Submitted to Contest #294

Poets, lovers, writers and artists, all calling from the heart to express love. Painting, breathing, writing, all capturing a feeling of connection, even if only revealing a flicker of reflection, memory and birth. Unchartered territory, born out of a need for love to be launched into the multi-verse, created, captured in the joy of expression and within the willingness of hope and return. The heavens above and the Earth below, magic in its true form as the full moon rises above in its mellowed tones, casting its light far and wide.&nbs...

6 likes 4 comments 4
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In the Absence of Saint Paul

Submitted to Contest #294

The whisper of a song shuddered me awake, but for a moment my thoughts remained sloshing about in the dream I’d just inhabited. Tiny fragments of which appeared tantalizingly in sharp focus before dissolving into my ever-awakening consciousness.  Squeezing my eyes shut, I willed myself back into the dream, but whereas before there had been something, and someone, now there was only darkness. “Paul!” my mother called from the bottom of the stairs. Opening my eyes, I imagined my mother wiping her hands on a dishtowel after washing up...

5 likes 2 comments 2
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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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