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Discover weekly, the best short stories

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

6040+ Inspirational Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. From tales of the miraculous to stories of extraordinary people overcoming incredible odds, you’ll always find something uplifting in our collection of inspirational short stories.

Inspirational Short Stories – Page 291 of 403

The Dawn of Justice

Submitted to Contest #92

Chapter 1 Before the back becomes so tired, nature never ceases to surprise the one carrying the load by easing it with a lighter one. No matter the difficulty in realizing that what is black is black; honey is honey not sugar, waiting for the day when the ears will only hear, the tongue to say only the exact of what it tasted, the nose to proclaim what it smelled; the eyes of the blind world will see again and walk in the light of justice. 40 years before the present, Lima was banished for the murder of her husband, D-Jero and she abandone...

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I am free

Submitted to Contest #92

"They want you dead.""Not all of them," Vian counters.It's true, though. By staying alive I am putting everyone in grave danger. Even the government threatened to drop nuclear weapons on the city."Just think about it," James nods to me and then walks away.I watch his figure limp towards the sliding glass door, his black hair ruffling in the wind. He pulls it open and steps inside the apartment."Getting worse," his whole body shifts and he grunts when he walks now. "Maybe he's right.""No, Rae, stop-""All those people, safe, finally?" It's a q...

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Prescient Patient

Submitted to Contest #92

For the tenth night in a row, I only managed to sleep for about an hour before perspiration and panic pulled me from the persistent dream tumult. As I gasped for breath, a lurid bolt of lightning immediately accompanied by a strident thunderclap shook my bedposts and divided the midnight for but a second before plunging my sparse bedroom back into utter blackness. I threw aside my dampened sheet into the oppressive shadows and cowered in the fetal position until my body stopped trembling.The storm outside began to subside as I tried to recal...

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The Shadows of the Flowers

Shortlisted for Contest #92 ⭐️

A general misconception about countryside homes is that they are beautiful and bright; I am basing this off of my personal misconception of the same kind. Countryside homes - they are like any other place on earth. They harbor equal shadow and light. Light is not always a fearless defender, you know. It does not chase away shadows. It is not on your side. More often than not, and always in real life, it shares space with the darkness. Nothing is fighting for you but yourself. It’s just the way things are. I understood that as a common l...

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Tsunami Tremor: March 13, 2013

Submitted to Contest #92

Fictionalized version of the very real events that occurred in March 2011 in Japan - Made on 12/19/13"Are you sure?” I asked, my fingers shaking.      “Positive. The seismograph’s off the charts. I also got a text warning, man. This is definitely not a false alarm. We have to go, now!” demanded Kosei.      The resounding roar ringed out, challenging my existence.      My time had come. Though only a beginner in the field, I prepared for that day fo...

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The Museum of Lost Things

Submitted to Contest #92

I wander around the dark corners of my life, grieving, trying to retrace my steps, looking but not searching. I know I will never see them again. After so many years they are still tiny perforations in my paper-thin soul, which would, I believe, be complete if only they had not been lost. I catalogue them in my mind, wincing each time I recall the loss, a Museum of Lost Things, darkness extinguishing flickering lights like an early cinematographic film. Each one briefly illuminated by its value, dimmed by the grief of its absence. Exhibit A...

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The Death Knell and the Vampire of Ogrencisi

Submitted to Contest #92

The Death Knell and the Vampire of Ogrencisi The Vampire of Ogrencisi witnessed how his closest ally, another immortal, was dissipated by being beheaded in the battle between the Turks and the Templars. A templar beheaded him and put a sword through his heart. Only a woman could distract him that way, Ogrencisi surmised. He slew the soldier who killed his friend and ended the battle but not without knowing where the woman was. She took refuge in a monastery among the nuns in the Balkan mountain. She was a Christian, an angel, who accompanie...

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The Fisherman

Submitted to Contest #92

                           WORDS 2,940 THE FISHERMAN "Yes Captain, yer wanted to see me." John was an old man who spent his life earning his living off the sea. He was not a well‑educated man but his natural intelligence had earned him the respect of his shipmates. He knew his trade well and he knew how to make money from it. "Yea, John," said his Captain. "Grab yourself a shot and sit down." John accepte...

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Shadow Gazing

Submitted to Contest #92

Shadow Gazing For over few months, I have been trying a strange experiment called shadow gazing. I would go to the terrace each morning, stand against the sun and stare at my shadow for a while, after which I would shut my eyes and look at the sky. Each time the impression that I had of the shadow in my mind’s eye was of a different colour or shape. I kept practising this for a while, each time when I closed my eyes and saw the impression in my mind, I could sometimes see my shadow would be full, sometimes part, sometimes headless, sometim...

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Lights over Stalingrad

Submitted to Contest #92

It was a cold and windy night of 6th August 1943. My guard post as a trooper of the allied forces was on the west bank of the river Volga, a key watchpoint to fire the at the Nazis. A routine 7 o’clock shift was settling at the watchpoint, and I remember how it used to be dark, dreary and deathly a few years before. With the news of the big win for allies getting over posts along the river, duty was somewhat lighter and more liven up. It’s 8 months after last Christmas and all I can think about is home. My thoughts are heavy about my new bo...

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Simon’s dark cottage

Submitted to Contest #92

It’s been almost 14 years now; Simon was left all alone to darkness, after Linda (his wife) and Sam (his 12 year old son) passed away in a car accident. This also led to Simon’s partial loss of eyesight, due to which he became allergic to sunlight. In the initial stage of this tragedy, he was supported by his friends and few family members, but later along with time flow, rest everyone got engaged with themselves leaving disheartened Simon alone in his giant cottage and that made him independent in darkness forever. The rays passed from...

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The Lost Friend

Submitted to Contest #92

“And let me tell you a story” he said, “That afternoon, the cross seemed too big to ignore. And there wasn’t just one cross but two, one in the line of his eyes and one at the edge of his left eye. The front cross stopped him to go across the road and the other cross, well, it indicated the stoppage of someone else's life. The fall and the winter had passed but what could not pass was his memory of Lucas. Daily, he remembered that how 23rd September just turned into a day to mourn for his entire life. "Why Lucas? Why did you had to go just...

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A mind of its Own

Submitted to Contest #92

Authors note: I admit, I definitely decided to take a twist on the prompt. Yes, It does start in darkness, and yes, it does end in light. But, in this particular piece of writing, I start in the darkness and depths of my mind and end in the light charming thoughts. Join me in this poetic, first-person narrative, piece, as I take a walk through my mind and discover myself. “You can't change what you refuse to confront.” John Spence once said. “But can I confront the things I can’t change?” I ask myself.  “ God grant me the serenity...

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The Moon Stalks alone...

Submitted to Contest #92

The Moon stalks alone… She shone diamond-like. She shone on the skies that had several spheres. Seven of them to be honest. That is why this stalking satellite was different than all other planets. Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Mars – etc etc… The moon had a pride. It came about because she knew how to steal the lights from the sun. She was a thief at nights, and yes: she knew about it. Well, some people on earth wanted to be polite. They said that the light of the moon was borrowed. However the matter was in this issue; Light she had and light...

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Ana's Vow

Submitted to Contest #92

She didn’t know what she was doing until she had bitten her nails almost down to the bone. I couldn’t do anything but watch in horror as Giselle nipped at her cuticles, the aura around her more horrifying than I could explain in my mind. She needed a true distraction. That night, I drink my first shot of alcohol. Giselle is beside me at the bar, crying into her hands, and I wish I could hug her as she hiccups.  “A-Ana, what am I going to do?” she wails, her voice barely audible over the roar of the music around us. “My parents hate me...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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