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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.

6110+ 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 3 of 408

The Sound of a Cat Laughing

Submitted to Contest #301

The Sound of a Cat LaughingIt had been a stressful time for Angela between late hours at work, an old house in need of repairs, and too much time with a man who didn’t love her. After a rather boring dinner, during the washing up, Angela did what every blogger and TikTok warned against. The long term boyfriend stood next to her as she rinsed their wine glasses. She had smiled and asked, “Where do you think this relationship is going? Do you think you’ll ever love me?”After a long pause, he answered, “No.” No, he wasn’t ever going to love her...

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Succession

Submitted to Contest #301

Succession planning however should begin as early as possible. Succession planning isn't just about the future. It can add real value measured in present day dollars and increase liability protection providing a peace of mind about securing your future and your legacy. Aligning your investments with your social and environmental values. Realize your vision for the future requires a careful crafted plan and the knowledge, guidance, and resources for a structured and experienced result. Investing involves risk. There is always the potential of...

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Lord, Have Mercy

Submitted to Contest #301

In Lamtinaland, a city alive with neon towers and ceaseless technological hum, the clash of human aspiration and unpredictable fate was never far from mind. I, Emma Lockhart, a journalist, seeker, and one-time conductor of narratives, often trust too much in my ability to make sense of things.Yet, at the heart of my Christian faith, I was reminded that we were not the Lord. That Latin echo—"Evita", to listen for those who have ears, had become a lesson I was still learning. There was a wisdom, kinder and more immense than any human narrative...

8 likes 4 comments 4
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Open Windows

Submitted to Contest #300

(Note: This story alludes to physical abuse and alcohol addiction)You can’t leave. You know that, right?Aubrey closed her bedroom door, a loud creak of protest sounding from its rusty hinges. She stood with her back against the wood, her eyes staring ahead at the baby blue paint peeling off the walls, comprehending nothing. The beer bottle had shattered next to her right ear and a ringing still lingered there. “It's ok,” she whispered, placing a trembling hand over her rattling heart, “just breathe.” Beyond the door, she could hear her fathe...

16 likes 8 comments 8
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Destination Unknown.

Submitted to Contest #300

"If you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there". Adam always believed that every path in life was set out like a roadmap, a clear direction from point A to point B. But on a cold November morning, with his breath misting in the pale light and the road ahead shrouded in mist, he realized that the path he had chosen was nothing more than a suggestion. He had once set off with certainty—to leave behind a city that had betrayed him, to find meaning and redemption somewhere out there in the wild unknown. Starting over. Yet ...

8 likes 3 comments 3
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First Confession

Submitted to Contest #300

Fuming, Sister Agatha slammed the desk with her hand. Everyone in the classroom sat up, bleary eyed, and stared. The subject, written on the blackboard, was ‘My First Confession.’ Sr. Agatha was well practiced at preparing first graders for this milestone. It was a big deal. She said, “Once again, thank you for your attention. Your first confession is tomorrow. If you’re not ready, I won’t be the one who suffers.” Her threat was not lost on anyone.One of the boys at the back of the classroom mumbled something and a wave of giggles spread thr...

19 likes 19 comments 19
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A Big Deal

Submitted to Contest #301

Gaga Wodkrthuh crashed into her Tokyo life not with careful plans but with bright-eyed bravado—a suitcase crammed with manga, hair in rebellious tangles, and a mind seething with wild schemes shimmering miles ahead of reality. The scent of Soka University’s manicured grass and chalk dust had barely faded from her coat when the city swept her into a kaleidoscope of neon—electric pink kanji humming over streetcorners, yakitori smoke curling beneath the pale moon, distant shrieks from midnight traffic. She said goodbye to the tidy campus and he...

3 likes 2 comments 2
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THE SKELETON IN MY HEAD AND THE MAN WITH THE PEN

Submitted to Contest #301

You know that moment when you drop a sarcastic comment on Facebook and, instead of sparking a fight with a random idiot, you end up finding the love of your life?Yeah, me neither.Not until I cracked open my crusty-ass keyboard and casually fired off a passive-aggressive opinion about books.Books. The fucking irony.Because me? I was a woman with more emotional scar tissue than well-written paragraphs. A walking anthology of unresolved trauma and questionable coping mechanisms. And somehow, that led me straight into the inbox of a writer. Not ...

4 likes 12 comments 12
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The Light from the Keyhole

Submitted to Contest #300

Just to give you an idea of some of the ups and downs in my life:I have been left in a trash can—left for dead.I have been surrounded by a loving family.I have been homeless under a bridge, with stolen blankets to keep warm, scraping mold off a pot of beans I cooked on a fire.I have pulled up to a $500,000 house with my beautiful wife after a three-course meal at a five-star restaurant, in my $120,000 truck, to sleep in a giant bed in a place we built together.I have been surrounded by true friends and family who wanted the absolute best for...

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She Climbs the Dunes for the Last Time

Submitted to Contest #300

At dawn of day, every day, she mounts the dunes facing the ocean. She steps sideways and small as her bare feet slip on the white loose sand. Her heavy breaths fog up the chilly morning air. Her hands on her knees, helping her push through the sand, get brushed by her salty coarse hair. When she finally reaches the top, she sits crisscrossed and sways her bottom side to side, creating a crevasse in the sand —the perfect chair. Her eyes gleam as she looks out onto the vast ocean, the tip of the sun is peeking at the horizon. The sky is colore...

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Saving Grace

Submitted to Contest #300

It is hell being in a place where we don’t feel we exist. A voice not heard and where our wisdom falls on deaf ears. A heart yearning for love when there is nothing left to give. Self-esteem living in the toilet and the promise of tomorrow being another day that feels already like it precludes hope and where pride already takes a dive, long before it falls and where ridicule robs our confidence to go after our dreams for fear of failure let alone tempt the bigger fear of success by poking that proverbial sleeping bear.Sound familiar?Welcome ...

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FOUNDATIONS (The Story of Us)

Submitted to Contest #300

It was our first time meeting somewhere to spend an entire weekend together after our initial 3 dates—each lasting 9 hours!—in Warsaw 23 days earlier. He had flown all the way from England to meet me at the Polish Seaside in a charming town called ‘Sopot.’At the time, I didn’t know what illness specifically I was suffering from, but I knew I was very ill with whatever was still waiting to be diagnosed. I was so exhausted and defeated from living in this state for going on a seventh month at that point, that the image of me in a doctor’s offi...

5 likes 1 comment 1
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The House of Mirrors

Submitted to Contest #300

The House of Mirrors “That Mr. Noel ain’t right in the head,” Dad told me as we sat among stacks of liquor store boxes, gnawing on our discount frozen dinners that tasted like meat flavored salt. I could complain, but it wasn’t going to do any good. First he had lost his job and then he had lost his wife. Well, she really lost herself in what the boxes around us had once contained, now they were packed of memorabilia from a time when my parents were maybe, actually, happy together. They must have convinced themselves that one was happi...

13 likes 6 comments 6
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Shaded Sight

Submitted to Contest #300

I didn’t find the trailhead. I found a trailhead. And that was the problem.The poem doesn’t warn you—it invites you in. Every line seems to glow with meaning. Until you realize it glows like a trick candle: bright, false, and hard to extinguish.I started my search like everyone else: with a map and a hunch. But to get where I ended up, I had to tear that hunch apart, follow constellations through shaded terrain, and admit I’d misread the compass more than once.It began the way these things always do: too many searchers, too many theories, an...

7 likes 2 comments 2
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The Value Beyond the Shine

Submitted to Contest #300

The earth whispered in her ears:"Do not seek only that which gleams. For the truest treasures are those that have endured the seasons, whose worth is not lost, but transformed.” This message did not arrive with the vibrance and brassiness that would be impossible to miss. Instead, it was delivered in a more muffled and subdued manner that felt a bit worn and weathered. There are moments in life when one must be open to receive the gentle whispers that often are not audible to the ears, yet they find alternate paths to resonate the spirit....

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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