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

5300+ Creative nonfiction Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. The creative nonfiction stories on this page deliver exactly what it says on the tin: true stories told in weird and wonderful ways.

Creative nonfiction Short Stories – Page 4 of 354

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’...

9 likes 4 comments 4
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Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction

Submitted to Contest #295

My family comes from the hills of Tennessee. Actually, they come from the valleys between the hills. They came to the United States from Germany around 160 years ago after they left Schwerin, the capitol city for one of the districts in northern Germany. Grandpa always told me the location of the border after any given war determined which country Schwerin was in, but as I study history I’m learning he was probably misinformed. After they left Schwerin they came through Canada, choosing the overland route and pausing in Ontario for a time be...

10 likes 6 comments 6
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BREE: ONEiROID

Submitted to Contest #295

The yellow spot on his otherwise clean white lab coat screams lunch was eaten on the go. Or his hand-to-mouth coordination lacks as much development as his medical knowledge.  “Drug-induced psychosis. We see it all the time. Your daughter is…” “What are you talking about? I told you, I’m not on drugs. I was attacked. You need to take these handcuffs off me, and to let me go!” I interrupt in a raspy, painful, and unrecognisable voice.  My head pounds under the bright lights, white walls, and smell of hospital-grade cleaning products...

8 likes 2 comments 2
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Autopsy of a Coincidence

Submitted to Contest #295

The instruction or ‘prompt’ I was given to write this was.    Write a story about a coincidence that ‘seems’ too good to be true.The thing about this coincidence, it doesn’t just rise to the level of seeming to be too good to be true, it’s a whopper! And still feels that way fifty-years later. It was actually a series of coincidences that occurred over a two-week period. By fate, happenstance or pure coincidence each event led to the next and eventually to the ultimate coincidence which changed my life for the better, for...

13 likes 7 comments 7
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Angel's Sleep

Submitted to Contest #295

Before we proceed further with this introduction, it is necessary to provide some historical background information to ensure a complete understanding of the topic at hand. As Raven-Wolf, I come from a long line of druids, Blood-hunters, and clerics, a heritage that has instilled in me a deep understanding of the supernatural. Cascading down my back, my long hair, a vibrant blend of blue and green, provided a striking contrast to my pale white skin and the striking purple of my eyes, which shone with an almost ethereal inner light. My movem...

11 likes 1 comment 1
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Can You Believe That?

Submitted to Contest #294

“Can you believe that?” asked Mike, as he pulled away from the curb.“What?” asked Stephanie.“Bob tried to tell me I shouldn’t drive home,” answered Mike. He snorted. “Like I can’t handle my liquor!”“I don’t think it’s the booze,” said Stephanie. “We’ve been partying all night. Michelle didn’t want us to drive home either. She offered us their spare room.”“The guys are coming over to watch the game,” said Mike. “It’s a four-hour drive. I’m gonna’ need at least a short nap before they arrive. Hey! Can you pass me a beer? They’re behind your se...

3 likes 1 comment 1
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Innocent Heights

Submitted to Contest #294

You ever notice how little kids can’t quite pronounce certain words? The letter R, for instance. Yeah, it didn't stand a chance. “Car” becomes “cah,” and “hair” turns into… well, “hay-woo.” And don’t even try throwing an L and an R in the same word. “Probably”? Good luck. You’ll get “pwobably” at best. Anyway, let me tell you about this date I went on. Nice guy named Eddie. Polite, easygoing, intelligent, and—most importantly—open to trying new things. Like snow skiing. Which, in hindsight, should’ve been my first clue. But back then I thoug...

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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...

22 likes 13 comments 13
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Only Child

Submitted to Contest #295

I have three siblings, but I am an only child. People are always surprised to hear about them, the three curious souls who grew up alongside me and are now nowhere to be seen. Perhaps, people are more surprised to hear I’m the youngest of the four, and the first to have a child of my own. If my older brother and his wife had been more careful, I may have been the only one brave enough to pursue parenthood; though, that’s not to say we’re not grateful. I do love my nephew, from a distance.Distance, that’s the word. That’s what stands between ...

21 likes 5 comments 5
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If I Could Just Say One Word, I Would Live

Submitted to Contest #294

If I Could Just Say One Word, I Would Live I need sugar. I need sugar. I need sugar. I should have caught this sooner but I didn’t or maybe I did but it wasn’t loud enough yet just a whisper of something wrong an itch in my brain saying you need sugar you need sugar you need sugar and I ignored it because that’s what I do I always think I have time until suddenly I don’t and now my hands are wrong my feet are wrong my whole body is just wrong. I don’t even remember sitting down or maybe I didn’t maybe my legs just stopped holding me up and n...

3 likes 0 comments 0
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Letters to a Ghost

Submitted to Contest #294

02/09/2024 --- 01:18 AMMy Ghost,Do you remember us like I do? I remember the night we met like it was yesterday. It was 2015, and we were having an all-nighter at my best friend’s house. You were drinking with her brother, at 15 like the rebel you were. I was too scared to participate since I was only 13, and I had decided to go to the backyard to look at the stars. You followed me out there and just started talking to me. I didn’t even know you, but you were drunk and spilling all your teenage heartbreak to me. A girl had just broken your h...

4 likes 1 comment 1
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Echoes of Home

Submitted to Contest #294

The house felt quieter than it had in years. Amber paced in the kitchen, stalling from cleaning off the kitchen counters. They weren’t very messy as it’s just her living there now. Her eyes drifted towards Kate’s empty chair around the dining table, where she used to sit every night for dinner. It had been roughly two months since Kate had left for college, which doesn’t seem very long; however, for a lonely mother, it is. To her, the house still felt like it was holding its breath. Suddenly, her phone buzzed on the counter, snapping Am...

4 likes 1 comment 1
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The Silent Scream

Submitted to Contest #294

A solitary tear slipped down her cheek. Her grief was meaningless to him as his daughter stifled her sobs. "Shut Up Carlene!" He whispered hoarsely"You'll wake up your sisters next door!" The coarse sound of his pants zipper sent shivers of dread and relief down her spine. He turned away impatiently and wiped his shrinking penis clean of their juices. Her only clean cotton shirt for school that morning was now soiled and would stink badly. As her father stumbled drunkenly away, her ruined blouse became the focus of her pain and anger instead...

6 likes 1 comment 1
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Muse

Submitted to Contest #294

Muse: Apologies if this isn't your usual type of letterHe was my museRhythm to my rhymeThe heaven to my hellDark brown eyesBright like the morning sunBut words shapeas a two-edged knifeAs my blood runs ever so dryOn the cold concrete floorAs my eyes shed oneteardrop at a timeLips soft as a butterfly touchTo my muse that was never mineTouch as delicate as a baby's touchWords smooth as the lies that were toldLike sugar-coated sweets, my museThat was never mineIt was wrong but felt so rightI was young and naiveBut oh how his touch was likethe s...

5 likes 4 comments 4
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Dear Friend…

Submitted to Contest #294

Dear Customer service,Please stop sending me your product. I never ordered it. Don’t use it. Won’t pay for it.Hello? Is there a person there at all? Your website says ‘contact us.’ Is there an ‘us’ to contact? Or do my letters end up in some digital version of hell, never to be seen, read, or answered by another human being? Do you have any concept of what customer service is about?Sincerely, Eugene Knox~Dear friend,Thank you for your robust interest in subscribing to our transformative, patented and cutting-edge skin care product, Lait de S...

7 likes 10 comments 10
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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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