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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.

5960+ 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 306 of 398

Sympathy for the Liar

Submitted to Contest #88

Beep, Beep, Beep. The harsh, loud noise of Evelyn Patterson's blaring alarm tone propelled her out of the sweet depths of her dream. Evelyn turned over to check her phone and silence the guilty thief of her slumber. As she checked the time, she considered if she could squeeze in another 15 minutes of sleep but with a deep intake of breathe and a yawn, she pushed herself to get up and out of bed. Her mind immediately paced through her to do list for the day. Her day was filled with endless screen time: online blog tasks, online remote tutor...

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THE PARROT WHO SPILT THE BEANS

Submitted to Contest #88

   John lived with his wife Ema and pet dog Bruno. They were both very helpful and good at heart. All the neighbours loved and respected them. Bruno was the only companion they had , their children having moved to seek their own destinies. Bruno was a cute little dog with silken brown coat .      One day the couple was playing in their garden with Bruno. Suddenly , Bruno sniffed hard and began to bark loudly. He ran to a spot under the oak tree and began circling it , jumping and wagging his tail ...

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The Man and The Sundial

Submitted to Contest #88

Long ago, there was a man living with his wife. She was one grouchy woman but apparently, the man was loving enough to consider her. They had no children for his wife couldn’t bear a child because of her condition. They lacked every luxurious thing in the world and lived under the shabby thatched of nipa hut in a place unheard of. A far-flung land where they needed a day or two to reach the market. The couple were thrusted with such weights in their hearts, yet they were generous. They loved each other and together, they were living happil...

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Tale of A Fairy Tale-Maker

Submitted to Contest #88

"Perhaps we are all unlikely writers." I heard those words through the depths of my thoughts. Who can say with any certainty how, where, or why they have been visited by the creative impulse? What we know is that when it arrived, largely unbidden; having infiltrated our psyche, we were transformed. This was my experience, although unlike most of the writers I know who were busy making up stories when they were old enough to pick up a crayon, my creative life did not begin until my 45th year. And that beginning was as surprising and pr...

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Illumination

Submitted to Contest #88

Robin Chattaway remembered the few spots of rain that had felt like small electrical charges to individual nerve ends and he could not understand why he was not addressing the ball that had fallen at the foot of the tall pines. Where was his club? Everything was black and there was an acrid burning smell! Cordite? Ozone? Carborundum? Bang! His body had reacted instantly and he had rolled to his right in a belated attempt to shelter from another violent clap of thunder. Sharp, damp twigs felt painful under his forearm as the mushy, spidery fe...

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Life of a Half Elf

Submitted to Contest #88

Life of a Half Elf christianhinrichsen4@gmail.com Life was never easy to a person of my history part Human and part Drow but with the friendship and guidance of my surrogate father Master Bennings, he taught me the reality of life. My name is Kayla Bennings and this is my story. Master Bennings took me in when neither of my parents' families accepted me. To them, I was a freak of nature and did not take the title of their families. Though I got my love from my mother it was not enough. So she joined me and took me to the Druid Circle Sch...

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Her Beauty

Submitted to Contest #88

The creatures of the island stared, their eyes sharp with judgement, as the newcomer trudged through the land, her head hung low. Her fur was a worn out brown. Ugly! They thought, smiling devilishly, trying to contain their snickers of laughter. Horns twisted out of her head, unlike the island creatures' perfectly straight ones. Her tail was short and more of a stub rather than majestic and long like the island creatures.The newcomer stared down, focused on a red leaf laying in the grass. How she wished to be equal to the other creatures! Wh...

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Danny Ducks tall tales

Submitted to Contest #88

Danny wanted nothing more then to fit in with his peers, he would always tell tall tales of great adventures and far off lands; fighting large bears and evil witches, only a courageous duckling like himself would attempt such dangerous feats. His grandmother warned him that one day all of his white lies would catch up to him, like most children his age he never listened. In fact his lies became more and more elaborate, his best friend Terry the turtle started questioning the validity of Danny stories. “I don't care if you believe me Terry, b...

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The tale of the third god

Submitted to Contest #88

The sound of hoof beats clicking on the ground diminished gradually as four black horses came to a stop and a bearded man holding a two-pronged scepter descended from the golden chariot that trailed behind them. As soon as his feet touched the ground, the man closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with the pure cloudless air in which basked the snowcapped peaks of Mount Olympus. The grim figure stood a few feet away from the golden gates of the heavenly fortress, his stern posture betrayed by the longing in his eyes for the fa...

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Greg and Jerry

Submitted to Contest #87

Jerry drew in a deep breath and pulled back the curtain so he could get a peek into the hall. He grew pale when he saw that there were at least two dozen kids already seated and more were making their way through the door. He let go of the curtain and turned quickly, releasing the breath, he had been holding out of sheer necessity. Greg’s lips twitched as he watched his petrified brother. For a moment, he just stood there. He stared at nothing until he broke into a sweat. Then he unwittingly began to wring his hands and pace around the room ...

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But Where Did Raven Go?

Submitted to Contest #87

Raven was just like her name, mysterious, dark, and evil. She didn’t do normal fairy things like talking to animals and magic spells to help people. She does her same routine every night, she waits carefully every night in front of the magic factory (where they produce all the magic dust for the fairies in her forest) until it has closed and all the worker fairies have left. Raven flies in front of the doors where the guards are, making sure to make a fuss for all the guards inside to come out.  “Ms. Silverbell you can’t trick us again...

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The gift of joy

Submitted to Contest #87

Another year had passed since that fated day. Had it really been a year already? It was no joke when people said, “as you get older, the days seem to drag but the years fly by.” As she pulled herself out of bed, throwing the faded quilt to the other side and rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she was feeling an equal mix of happiness and trepidation. Would the day bring celebration or unwelcome surprises? As a child Laura recalled this day with fondness as all children do. And as every adult learns in their own time, the day brings mixed emo...

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Serendipity

Submitted to Contest #88

Serendipity The recent heavy rains had slowed Pearl down; as much as she loved the rain and how it graced leaves and flowers in tiny liquid water jewels, it had made the narrow dirt tracks running through the borough of Shadewell difficult to navigate. Her wagon wheels ground to a halt in many places, choked up with mud and rocks. At one point all that could be done was to sit there in the middle of the muddied track, pouring rain and wait it out until at least the deluge eased enough so she could see what exactly was stopping the wheel...

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Truth to power, academic style

Submitted to Contest #88

Truth to power, ACADEMIC STYLE By Noel Bouck She couldn’t deny that she suffered from occasional bouts of arrogance.  Not frequently, she thought.  Although perhaps that thought is itself a tad arrogant.  Recently she asked her husband who is usually painfully frank when given a chance to comment on his wife’s failings, if he thought she was arrogant.  “No one would ever think you were arrogant, really” was his reply, “especially not in academics.”  Whatever the situation now, she did r...

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Who is the bigger fool?

Submitted to Contest #87

  Trigger Warning: suicide My fingers shivered as they glided across the sharp metal surface of the chains, they felt heavy under the weight of guilt which hung so greatly on the chains I had forged. I slide them across the ground into position, I was ready now. I just needed to wait… Earlier that same day. It had been a long time coming, I knew I had to do it. It might not make others laugh, but it would be the best April fools I have ever had, I will be so thrilled come 12 o’clock this morning. I had to prepare. I thought about primar...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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