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Monthly Short Story Contest
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2023 August: An Unforgettable Summer
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That’s fantastic Glenda.
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(1,000 words)
Five-year-old Jeremy was looking forward to starting kindergarten. His other friends weren’t so enthusiastic though. Thankfully, the president had put an official end to the covid pandemic. He wouldn’t be forced to wear a mask like he had seen his ten-year-old brother Adam do when he got on the school bus in the morning. Kindergarten story time and plan time will be more enjoyable since he would see everyone’s faces. On the other hand, Adam kept his thoughts to himself as he read a fantasy book from his collection while he lay on his bed. These thoughts were dashed away when their mother, Siena walked into their bedroom. She always wore her red beaded necklace with a garnet cross.
“Boys, we’re out of milk, hot dogs, and buns. I’m going to make a quick stop at the grocery store. Don’t get into mischief while I’m gone.”
The boys acknowledged their mother with side glances as she retreated down the stairs. Once they heard the car start up and head down the street, the two boys ran down the stairs and out the back door. The boys started playing in the backyard on the swing set and sandbox. Little Jeremy noticed a strange mushroom growing near the sandbox. He pulled it out of the ground and started chewing on it.
“No! No! Don’t do that!” warned Adam.
It was too late. His brother passed out just outside the sandbox. The sun was quickly going down making it difficult to see. Adam was in a panic when all a sudden he noticed a grasshopper climbing up his leg. It began speaking to him.
“Sir, if I may be of some assistance, you could help your brother,” said the grasshopper. “And my name is George, by the way.”
“George, how could a little grasshopper help my brother? I need to call 9-1-1.”
“That mushroom has been planted by Velda of Witch Island or one of her helpers. The only way to save your brother is to go there for the anecdote.”
“And how am I supposed to do that?” asked Adam.
George hopped on a nearby tree that had a hole in it. He peered inside, turned around, and addressed the boy.
“Inside this hole in the tree, you will find your answer.”
Adam placed his hand inside the hole in the tree and pulled out what looked like a walkie-talkie. He turned it on, pressed the button, and spoke.
“Can anyone hear me? I need help, PLEASE. My brother may be dying! Can someone help me?”
He saw something odd in the sky like a falling star. Instead of it landing in the normal path, it stopped above him and landed on the ground. A bronze-colored chronosphere was in his backyard, brought there be a white rabbit in a suit. The chronosphere is a round traveling machine to take its passenger to other worlds. It is basically a round metal frame with gears and dials.
“You’re a rabbit-” Adam was cut short.
“Don’t waste any time, Boy. Your brother’s life depends on it. Get in! I’ll set the dial to Witch’s Island.”
Once Adam entered the contraption, the rabbit turned the dial until he saw the words “Witch’s Island.” He put the handle shifter forward. The chronosphere left the ground with pink smoke trailing. Soon the boy and rabbit were traveling above the clouds. Witch’s Island was a hop, skip, and a jump away. It was located at the Sea of Wooden Dogs. The sea was named that for the many wooden dogs people had carved and attached an anchor to each making them float on the waves. It was quite artistic as seen from the air. The chronosphere landed on the beach. Adam followed the rabbit to the tree line. From there they followed a path through the jungle until they came to Mount Lizard.
“Quiet boy, lest you awaken the poisonous lizards,” warned the rabbit.
They went to a small cave and opened the old, rotting door. The rabbit pulled a small flashlight from his pocket. Many medicine bottles were on old, dusty shelves. Some were in crates on the floor. The rabbit seemed familiar with where to go for the exact medicine needed. Once they obtained it, they turned to leave the cave. Some rocks fell from the ceiling and hit Adam in the head.
“Ouch! Oh, my gosh!”
“Shhh!” warned the rabbit. It was too late. The poisonous lizards started to stir. “Run for it!” yelled the rabbit.
Off they fled to the beach. All along the trail, they could see dozens of Komodo Dragons the length of medium-sized alligators. These ate anything smaller than themselves. Both Adam and the rabbit would make a good meal if caught. Adam screamed and ran faster as his adrenaline kicked in.
They arrived at the beach and entered the chronosphere. The rabbit sent it hurtling through the sky, leaving the hungry lizards in a cloud of pink smoke.
To Adam’s relief, they arrived in Adam’s backyard. After landing, the rabbit turned to the boy to share some information.
“Before I go, I think you need to know a family secret.”
“Yes,” coaxed Adam.
“Alice who visited Wonderland is your great-grandmother. That’s where I got this chronosphere. I’m sure she would be proud of you.”
“Thank you for sharing that with me. I better hurry and give Jeremy this medicine.”
Once the medicine was administered to Jeremy through his lips, he blinked his eyes and came to life. The rabbit had gone before Jeremy could see the rabbit in the suit controlling the chronosphere up and away, but not before inviting Adam to visit him at the Realm of Cards. He would keep the walkie-talkie in the hole of the tree.
Sienna came home to see her two boys watching Gilligan’s Island reruns.
“Did you boys get into any mischief?”
“No mama,” they said in unison as Adam winked at Jeremy.
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(1,000 words)
Five-year-old Jeremy was looking forward to starting kindergarten. His other friends weren’t so enthusiastic though. Thankfully, the president had p..."
What an enjoyable read Glenda. So much suspense! I was completely caught up in the story.
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Thank you, ma'am. I cut out some things to focus on the fantasy instead of reality. I just made the word count at 1,000.
Who would have thought our Glenda writes for kids? Captivating story with enough action to keep a young reader happy.
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Yes, I've been working on short stories for children/family-friendly ones since 2014 after Heather Schuldt gave us a theme with prompts about tea bags made with cat fur that transformed people. The title that I've been writing these stories is the Enchanted Willow Forest. I used this theme for us to do ongoing Round Robin short story writing https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... I hope that people will participate.
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Looks like we’re not getting much engagement but looking forward to a better outcome in September.
Thank you Glenda for keeping the home fires burning.
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Looks like we’re not getting much engagement but looking forward to a better outcome in September.
Thank you Glenda for keeping the home fires burning."
No problem. I tried to change the format going forward for people to engage at their convenience. We will see how this plays out. I know there are more important things to do than write a short story and these are hard times for some people. If people are falling out of love with writing, that's one thing. But we come together here to engage with one another where writing is a pleasure.
The prompt:
Your main character is a young boy, about ten years old. He’s watching his five-year-old brother while his mother runs to the store.
Outside the window, the sky goes black. Then the power goes out. A strange object lights up the sky, growing brighter as it gets closer.
What happens next?
In your story include one or both of the following elements:
* A family secret
* A red necklace
Let your imagination run wild and have fun!
Voting will take place between August 25, 2023 to August 28th. Winners will be posted in this thread on September 1st. A survey will be posted to vote or you can send me a message on Goodreads.
Challenge Guidelines
Genre: Fantasy, Thriller, Sci-Fi, Mystery, Crime, Comedy, Romance, or a mixture (BASICALLY, anything but erotica)
Purpose -
Some fiction writers are looking to win a short story contest, keeping in touch with making deadlines, and/or simply sharpening the skill of writing fiction. The main purpose of this contest is to sharpen plot and character skills, collect your own short stories, receive good feedback, make a good connection with other writers, and take a short break from your current novel to get a fresh view when you return to it.
Rules and Directions -
* Type in English - a minimum of 750 words; a maximum of 1,000 words; no erotica, no profanity.
* Post your title, by line, and word count total in the first line of your story posting.
* Writers are responsible for their own copyright. Authors keep all rights. PRIVACY POLICY IS ENFORCED. COPYRIGHTS AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS BELONG TO INDIVIDUAL AUTHORS. THIS CONTEST DOES NOT GRANT ANY PERSON THE RIGHT OR LICENSE TO COPY OR USE OTHER STORIES. EACH STORY IS PROTECTED BY THE COPYRIGHT OF THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR.
* ONE entry per person, must be the writer's original work, a final revision, and a new piece of writing. Please do not delete and repost since this becomes confusing to the readers. Try to post your final revision.
Judging: The story will be judged on creativity, proper grammar, good punctuation, and overall good quality for story.
Voting: Please vote for first, second, and third place. You are not allowed to vote for yourself. If posting this month, you MUST vote, in order for your story to remain eligible.