Menu

More apps built by Reedsy

Assemble a team of professionals

The writing app for authors

Writing courses, events and memberships

Get your book reviewed

Weekly writing prompts and contests

Menu
Prompts
Contests
Stories
Blog
Directory
Weekly Prompts Contest
Reedsy Literary Prize
Magazine
FAQ

← All contests

#283 Seasonal Twists

Don’t forget to use the hashtag #ReedsyTwist to share your stories (and potentially get featured on our social accounts)!


It’s Christmas week, and if you’re celebrating, I hope you’re surrounded by everything that brings about festive cheer: twinkling lights and decorations, catchy holiday pop songs, the aroma of family recipes passed down through generations…


The familiarity of tradition grounds us in a world that’s always on the move. But as every storyteller knows, change is what makes narratives interesting. This week, let’s shake up some cozy Christmas traditions and add a little surprise to them. What will your characters do when the unexpected takes center stage?

This week's prompts

Write a story that ends with a huge twist.

– 79 stories

Write a story about two characters who surprisingly end up spending a holiday or event together.

– 50 stories

Write a story about someone’s first Christmas after a major life change.

– 51 stories

It’s the most wonderful time of the year — except your character can’t shake the feeling that something’s off.

– 36 stories

Write a story with the line “I wasn’t expecting that.”

– 63 stories

Stories

Xmas Spirit

Weekly Contest #283

           “Has anyone seen Ed?” The question echoed through the house.           “I think he is in the bathroom.” He was. Edward had been feeling rather solemn at the Christmas party. He felt distracted. He kept looking behind people while they spoke as if he was looking for someone, or something, else. Now he found himself in the bathroom, staring directly in his own eyes, trying to rally himself to the remainder of the evening. I’...

7 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

Shaping the Future.

Weekly Contest #283

Yes, love makes the world go round. This was a thought Cosmic Mystic Elke told herself more than once, as she was enjoying this romantic stage of her new world. She and Big Al Grayson went on proudly defying their Christian parental influences, by continuing to have sleepovers with each other. To be sure, after Big Al had invited New Age Cosmic Elke to turn back to God in his more liberal minded church, she had accepted that in all her days, Jesus had always close at hand. That thought had stood her in good stead when Big Al's tall but rigid...

7 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

A Home To You and Me

Weekly Contest #283

There was a certain delight to be found within the walls of a disreputable bar. The peanut-ridden floor, the dirty cigarette smell, the homeless regulars sleeping in the corners, all of Gregory’s bar’s charms held an unmistakable allure that pulled in the group of friends who visited the establishment regularly. Blonde Anna Louise, red-eyed Jeremy, brunette Lee, and the freckled Oliver, though just barely above the legal drinking age, had found themselves in the same cushioned booth on the same Saturday night for the past few years–yes, ille...

7 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

~Other Worlds~

Weekly Contest #283

~ Other Worlds ~Wisty removed her prosthetic hand and placed it on the seat. She had it on for the last two days and it was wearing on her. Then turned to Shewuma and asked, “So. Chieftess?” Wu hopped up next to her and sat cross-legged. “My father was chief, and my twin brother and I were his only children. But we had the sacred lineage and were turned. We both had to give it up.” “Do you regret it?” Wu thought about her life and smiled. “No, not at all. I had Enoch. Now I have Debbie and Jimmy and David E. and Tippycat and the rest of the ...

7 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

Francis

Weekly Contest #283

Francis“The world is off again,” said the man in front of me.            The man in front of me didn’t lean forward to emphasize his point. He didn’t raise his voice, or even vary his inflection. He just stated his opinion—no, his feeling—in a very slow, even way. The way you might expect a young child to tell you how the word dog is spelled or that two plus two equals four. Just straightforward and simple.            “What do you me...

7 likes 4 comments 4
Read story

It's Okay

Weekly Contest #283

Trigger Warning: This story contains themes of mental health struggles, emotional distress, and graphic descriptions of violence and gore, which may be unsettling for some readers. Discretion is advised. Mike hadn’t been coming home for the past two weeks. It was strange because he would always come home with his two duffle bags and stay until New Years. Christmas holiday was all he looked forward to. It was something he and I thoroughly enjoyed. We would go out to dinner, drink hot chocolate with a splash of whiskey in it, and cuddle next t...

7 likes 9 comments 9
Read story

Sailing without a Map

Weekly Contest #283

I wasn't expecting that. I never saw this coming. No, I never imagined I’d find myself here—adrift in a vast sea with no shore in sight. It’s almost laughable, how we draw up our plans, as if by design—a timetable to guide us, to keep us on course. Yet, at the close of each cycle, we look back and realize how empty those plans have become, how meaningless they feel. It feels like only yesterday when my sister sent me that message, asking me to show up for an interview dressed in "smart attire." But foolish me, I took the word "smart" at fac...

7 likes 4 comments 4
Read story

A Savior is Born

Weekly Contest #283

Surrounding them were decorations of all kinds. The silver-suited nutcrackers reminded Roger of his grandfather's quartet. He wished Delilah had had a chance to meet him, and hear them sing the Montana Hop. The Silver Foxes almost made it to the Barbershop Quartet Championship one year. Roger also wished he had a close knit group like his grandfather, close enough to form a quartet even. Not that he would, or that he was a very good singer.Looking across the dimly lit table Roger's eyes’ pupils dilated as they fell upon Delilah, the love of ...

7 likes 0 comments 0
Read story

"Frau" #ReedsyTwist

Weekly Contest #283

Frau Trigger Warning: This short story contains some Language, Sexual Content, partial Nudity, strong Bloody Violence, Gore, some Substance Abuse, and Suspense. “I have an idea! I found some old board games in my late grandmother’s attic. One had this dice with six sides. One dot on two sides, two dots on two sides, and three dots on two sides. So, here’s what you do…” said the host of the Christmas Eve party, Sarah, but before she could explain the rules of the game, the front door of the cabin flew open, and snow blew inside with the blust...

7 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

The Christmas Secret

Weekly Contest #283

Christmas has found its way back around the 365 day calendar and my family is loosing their fucking mind. If I hear Mariah one more time, I'll become Ursula and she aint getting her voice back. It's bad enough that I'd felt uneasy since being here and decided to hide upstairs in the kids bedroom. "Courtney! Come downstairs! Don't be a Screwge!" mom yelled from the kitchen. The house is filled with relatives from both sides, which includes the ones that only come for a few conversations and 2 bags of to-go plates. The aunt that thinks she's ...

7 likes 6 comments 6
Read story

It Takes Two

Weekly Contest #283

"Follow me, right this way," my friend Alan beckoned, as we passed through the booming crowd. Fifth Ave was teeming with people, the stage was set, and a singer, 'Porky' was about to get on it and do her stuff. She kind of looked like a little piglet, hence the name. Her hair was topped with a tall pink tiara with sequins and ribbons, and a hot pink body suit to match showed off her curves. Her heels were black, with ballet-style ribbons up the leg.All were cheering for her, urging her on. She reached the mic stand and stood there, blushing ...

7 likes 4 comments 4
Read story

BOXING DAY ON MARS

Weekly Contest #283

Two old enemies met in a cave on the planet Mars.The storm had raged for weeks, covering everything with a layer of fine, rust colored dust.Winds howled murderously, though the atmospheric pressure is less than one percent that of the Earth. The dust clouds covered the entire Martian surface. It was impossible to find one's way—yet the lone, red garbed figure made his way unerringly to the hidden cave.Above him, scarlet whirlwinds towered hundreds of feet. They stooped like curious giants. Ghastly voices shrieked and howled in the wind that ...

7 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

The Last Letter

Weekly Contest #283

The sun hung low in the sky as Thomas walked along the dirt road leading to the old farmhouse. He had been here many times before, but today was different. Today, he wasn’t coming back to visit his grandmother, as he had every weekend for the past ten years. Today, he was coming for the last time.Grandma Esther had passed away in her sleep two days ago, a peaceful end for a woman who had lived through so much. The house, which had always been a symbol of comfort and warmth, now felt cold, almost eerie. Thomas had been named executor of her e...

7 likes 2 comments 2
Read story

Recyclable

Weekly Contest #283

The line was moving faster than it did last year. That meant one of two things, that either efficiency was up, or the more realistic alternative being that fewer New Year’s babies were being born. The practice had become akin to shooting an albatross. No one wanted a New Year’s babe these days. I couldn’t blame them. There was a certain dread to it, that specific date looming, always counting down the days. You couldn’t shake it or ignore it, and despite the day to day activities of life, it was always present in the back of your mind. ...

7 likes 5 comments 5
Read story

Mulled

Weekly Contest #283

Wonderful. It should be wonderful. That’s how it’s supposed to be. And I guess, by inference, that’s how I’m supposed to be. I am supposed to be wonderful. No pressure there then. No pressure at all. Dance monkey! Dance! Perform. Put on a show. Delight your audience. Only, there is no audience. Not this year. And that feels wrong somehow. Wrong in a way that makes no sense to me as I awaken to a Christmas morning on my own.Christmas is steeped in all manner of emotional herbs, spices and vices. Year upon year, it ferments and becomes a stron...

7 likes 7 comments 7
Read story

How to Write a Novel

Join Tom Bromley for a writing master class and finish your first draft in 3 months. Learn more →

How to Write a Novel