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Debra Stimpson

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jun, 2026

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15 Followers
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5 Stories

113 karma pts

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Camazotz

Weekly Contest #364

Contains mild horror/violence Once upon a time, I died. No, really. Dead as a doornail, they said. I know who killed me. You will too, eventually. The villagers? No skin off their noses. Though entertaining, stoning the unwelcome outsider on the rare occasions he ventured onto their sacred soil wasn’t their main source of fun. Nasty bunch—men, women, children—even animals. One whiff of the bat guano that wallpapered my cave sent snarling, biting dogs chasing after me, as if I were a giant vampire bat swooping down to suck the life out of th...

12 likes 5 comments 5
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Phobia

Weekly Contest #363

Sondra’s head snapped backwards as her uncle slammed on the brakes. The car skidded to a halt seconds before the northern end of the bridge to Heart Island collapsed with a deafening roar. Twelve-year-old Sondra stared in abject horror as the red station wagon carrying her family plunged into the raging, white water of the river below. She unhooked her seatbelt and reached for the door handle just as Aunt Myrna locked all of the doors. “Let me out!” Sondra cried. “We have to save them!” “Honey, please listen. We have to get off this bri...

6 likes 2 comments 2
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Food For the Soul

Weekly Contest #362

“Aghh, it burns!”Arms folded tightly against her chest, Vicky clamped her mouth shut. “No more.” Staring at the offending glass of murky orange liquid, she wished she hadn’t asked to go—at least in front of the doctor. Why is he making me do this? It’s stupid. “You heard Dr. Adler. If you want to spend the weekend with Grandma and Grandpa, you have to drink it all. If you can do that, you can go.” “She drank most of it, Nellie. A couple more sips won’t make a difference. I cringe thinking about how painful it must be to have acidic orange j...

11 likes 6 comments 6
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Dear Jane

Weekly Contest #361

September 23, 1972Dear Jane,I love you, I really do. But I don’t think we can make this work. Long-distance relationships never last. If you hadn’t changed your mind about going to Boston University, maybe we could make a go of it. But I’ll be too busy with my music, and you don’t even have a driver’s license. So this is goodbye. Have a good life.Bob*** “He’s got to be kidding. Have a good life? After eighteen months of ‘I love you, you are my soul mate, I never want to be without you’…bah!” I burst into tears, and the soggy offending letter...

14 likes 7 comments 7
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Discarded Memories

Weekly Contest #359

“Suche und du wirst finden.”Laura pulled her nose out of the German immigration index she had been scouring for hours. Head on a swivel, she located the apparent source of the cryptic statement that had so rudely interrupted her concentration. “Excuse me? Are you speaking to me?”“Oh, no, no. Heh, sorry, no. Did I say that out loud? I’m terribly sorry.”The young man sitting at the table behind Laura looked abashed, his cheeks flushed with color and his dark hair tousled as if he’d just run his hands through it. He wore a rumpled white shirt w...

12 likes 2 comments 2
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