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Daniel R. Hayes

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2020

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1111 Followers
1070 Following

71 Stories

7814 karma pts

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Couldn't Put It Down

(Content Warning: Violence, Blood and Gore, Language.)What is it about a good book? It’s a question that has plagued my mind for thirty years. Maybe it’s the way the authors weave their tales together with vivid imagery like: “Cotton candy as fluffy as the clouds.” Or perhaps it’s the way they infuse their personalities into each story. Who knows, and who cares, really?Ahem…well…I do care, thank you! I just love a good book. Don’t you? My love for reading began when I was a toddler. While other kids grabbed their crayons to plaster smil...

22 likes 9 comments 9
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Heavy is the Night

(Content Warning: Violence, Gore, Murder, and Abusive Situations.)Alicia’s whimpers brought life to the darkness in the cold, musty cellar where the spiders crawled, and the slugs oozed toward the black molded cement blocks. The damp soil she sat on was a warm cocoon of filth that delivered no comfort. It was a harsh reality of her failed marriage. The heavy chains around her wrists and ankles were chafing her pale skin. Thick cobwebs were layered throughout her long black hair, and the carpenter ants explored her dry-rotted clothes.The only...

21 likes 8 comments 8
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The Search for Fully Popped Kernels

(CW: Violence, Blood, Gore and Crude Humor) In the dark, cool womb of rotting soil beneath Elk Grove Cemetery, a faint buzzing sound rattled Ed O’Neal’s freshly planted corpse. One might think it strange to be buried with your phone, but if you knew Ed, you’d think nothing of it. A control freak for perfection in the living world, he left explicit instructions in his will for that glossy android device to be plastered to his side in the event of his passing. Passing…such a strange word for death. Catastrophic would have been the better ch...

15 likes 24 comments 24
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Stout

In the lands between the great mountains in the North, an emerald green pasture gives way to a vast apple orchid where the Periannath stood on wooden ladders, plucking the succulent fruit with their rugged hands. The winter season was quickly approaching, and there was a lot of work to be done.What are the Periannath, you ask? Well, my friends, they are not unlike you or me, and the only way one could tell the difference is from their short statures. You see…a Perian, in singular form, is a person true and through—not unlike the sea dwellers...

17 likes 20 comments 20
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From the Catacombs

Weekly Contest #258

(Content Warning: Violence and Gore)I open my bloodshot eyes and watch the shadows dance from the flickering torches hanging on the cold, dripping bricks. My legs and buttocks are numb, but I can’t deny the annoying sensation coming from my right hallux. I see a pair of tiny red eyes looking up at me. My mind screams in silent terror as a piece of flesh is torn from just below my curved toenail. The rats are unrelenting in their quest for flesh.My long tenure in this malicious prison has eroded the cobblestone floor. Thick iron chains keep m...

65 likes 87 comments 87
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Mistaken

The sickly-sweet aroma of decadent freshly cut flowers filled Tomblin’s Funeral Home like a warm breeze blowing through a floral garden. The delicious splash of color did little to hide the tear-stained faces sitting on the golden benches staring at a yellow pine coffin. The mourners were dressed in their finest clothes, which was fitting for the moment, but the dead don’t care about such frivolous things. The man on display was Sam Horner. A father to a long-lost son, husband to a loving wife who had passed the year prior, and a man who had...

16 likes 25 comments 25
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My Father's Words

Weekly Contest #255

“When life throws you crackers, you have to deal with the crumbs.” Straight from my father’s lips to my inner soul, I never understood the meaning of those words until now. He first said them to me on the banks of the Tygart Valley River on a cool summer morning just before the humid heat had a chance to bake the day. The fish weren’t biting, and I remember icy daggers stabbing my heart. Somehow, he knew how I felt. “It’s okay,” he would say. “It’s not about the fish.”  I remember those long walks home after a hectic day at Jennings ...

35 likes 38 comments 38
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What A Day Yesterday Was

(CW: Murder, blood, gore, violence.) Ben Warden opened his eyes and let the white light penetrate his soul. The cream-colored walls lacked sympathy and the shrill beeping sounds pounded his ears like a construction crew working overtime on a busy Friday afternoon. He tried to scream, but something was lodged in his esophagus. His arms lacked the strength to move, and a dark cloud of weariness licked his consciousness. “Now, now, deary,” a feminine voice whispered. “Stay still while I fetch the doctor.” As the ventilation tube was remo...

16 likes 17 comments 17
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A Legendary Love

Weekly Contest #253

“I wish we could stay here forever,” Althea said, staring into Mesa’s hazel eyes. He pulled her close and pressed his soft lips on her forehead. “It really is a beautiful place,” he said warmly. “We’ve been coming to this secret spot in the jungle for years, and every single time…you make me want to stay.” One look at Althea’s cocoa eyes, and he knew it was true. She always had a tender way with her love; it was a precious gift he would never take for granted. “You make me want to stay too, Meu Tesouro.” Althea’s nickname for Mesa meant my...

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King Mesa

(This is a continuation of High-Heeled Princess) Althea’s gleaming black hair flowed like a majestic river flowing through a beautiful countryside as Mesa eagerly followed her through a vast jungle behind their village. The scent of white tea and citrus permeated his senses and filled him with glee. The aroma was a delicate blend of soft perfumes made from natural ingredients because Althea had sensitive skin, and nothing else would do. Mesa understood that completely because he suffered from skin allergies, too. If a single pollen spor...

24 likes 15 comments 15
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High-Heeled Princess

Weekly Contest #250

A soft, red petal gently kissed Mesa’s front door and floated in through his mother’s kitchen window like a love bird searching the lands for a new suitor. The warm breeze delivered the delicate parcel to the table just before Mesa could take a bite of his Frosted O’s.“Mama, look what the wind blew in!” Mesa said with a dash of exhilaration. “What is it?”Lola removed the scrambled eggs from the hot stove and brushed them on an empty plate. She turned her attention to Mesa, who was wearing his Ninja Turtles pajamas, and smiled. His black hair...

39 likes 43 comments 43
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The Field of Crystal Dreams

Weekly Contest #249

(CW: Violence) The aroma of cedarwood and cheap beer filled the air like smoke from a forest fire. Tapping cowboy boots and high-heeled stilettoes matched the raunchy country music blasting from the hi-def speakers in Old Charlie’s Bar. It was a Saturday night, and the place was packed with stressed-out patrons who wanted to let loose and have some fun after a long work week. A sea of flannel shirts, blue jeans, and twirling summer dresses filled the dance floor like one would expect, and every seat at the bar was taken. Framed pictures o...

44 likes 22 comments 22
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The Christmas Queen

Weekly Contest #229

(CW: Violence, Language, crude humor, blood, comic mischief) A frozen blanket of ice glazed the roads on Fern Street as the Wallace family headed home from a busy day of shopping. The houses were adorned with multi-colored lights, and blow-up decorations were as far as the eye could see. Every door had a festive wreath to showcase the spirit of the season, and carolers sang songs of merry for all to hear. Yes, my friends, it was Christmas Eve once again. A time when boys and girls dream of toys and candy, and parents wish for peace ...

31 likes 36 comments 36
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The Spooky Boogie

Weekly Contest #221

(CW: Violence, crude humor)Halloween is a holiday that everyone knows well because it’s the only time humans and spirits can co-exist. Every year on October thirty-first, the dead rise from their graves and walk among us. The demons crawl out from the shadows because the holy light holds no sway, and even the monsters come out to play.At first, there was bloodshed on both sides, but it didn’t take long for humans to adapt to the annual phenomenon by dressing up in silly costumes to blend in with the evil entities, and oddly enough, it worked...

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Lost in Darkness

Weekly Contest #203

(Content Warning: Mild Language and Violence.) Laura Watson awoke from a restless sleep and batted her eyes at the morning sun. She couldn’t see the beautiful beaming rays infiltrating her window, but the warmth cascading on her skin was undeniable. There was no doubt another morning had come her way. Laura didn’t have to worry about adapting to the world because she was born into a life of darkness. She sat up, placed her feet on the hardwood floor, and smiled. Soft whispers from her late mother reminded her that being blind had i...

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