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Fly by the seat of your pants and write a story without a plan.

Posted in Short Story on Nov 8, 2022

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✍️ 67 stories

Don't Forget

Submitted to Contest #170

C/W Neglect. Domestic abuse. Physical abuse. Mental health. The lighter flicks one to many times before the flame engulfs the end of a Marlboro Red. I breathed in the smoke, feeling the nicotine surf through my veins as my body relaxed. The Texas heat hasn’t been kind this summer and I was about two hours away from ripping my sweat drenched clothes off and pouring myself a tall glass of Stella Rosa. At the same time, being at work made all the madness at home seem to disappear because here I was in charge. Working the night shift at the ...

9 likes 1 comment 1
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The First Date (or, The Bouquet of a Dozen Mistakes)

Submitted to Contest #170

In my defense, it had been six years since I had been on a date. Yes, you read that part right. Six. Long. Years. And yes, you read the next part right, too. Not “in a relationship”, but “on a date.” If you haven’t already guessed, my “in a relationship” time chasm was even wider.It’s not the sort of thing you want to put on your dating profile, you know? Tall and slender, early thirties. Likes working out. Dog person. Has been 2,193 days since any meaningful contact with the opposite sex.Lucas and I had messaged each other on an online dati...

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Prequel to 'A sale is a sale!'

Submitted to Contest #170

"Now," said the bright and cheery realtor, with her helmet of blonde hair and lavender pastel skirt suit, "This house has been on the market for some time, but don't let that discourage you." She said, smiling back at the pretty but ordinary woman in her late forties with her perfectly straight and whitened smile. "The family who owned this house were never sure they were ready to sell." Unlocking the lock with a flick, she opened the creaky front door peeling with white paint. Following the click of high heels and wading through the fog o...

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Improv is Danger

Submitted to Contest #170

The cadre (instructors) at the Special Forces Qualifications course had always told me that improvising, no matter what you're improvising with, was always a danger. If you go grocery shopping without a list, you're going to end up buying more than you should. If you are a motivational speaker, and you don’t prepare anything before your big speech, you could end up not having enough content for the speech.  In this case, I’m a Special Forces soldier about to assault a building without a plan and probably going to die. That is exactly w...

9 likes 2 comments 2
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I've got a plan

Submitted to Contest #170

“I’ve got a plan, we can make this work.” “What do you mean you have a plan?” He hurriedly begins packing his bags and rushes to the bathroom to grab his shampoo, “I mean, I have a plan and I will tell her, Julie.” “I don’t believe you, you promised you would tell her months ago. What makes this any different than the situation eight months ago Frank? You said you loved me, you said you wanted a family with me, so what has changed since?” He stops packing and looks up for a moment, “You’re about to have our baby, that changes everything.” He...

8 likes 1 comment 1
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The Devotion of Aephius

Submitted to Contest #170

The following is a tragic folktale that exists within Pereclos, a Greece-inspired kingdom located in the fantasy world I'm creating, and which is the setting for many other stories I'm writing (warning—includes themes of sex, murder, and suicide):Long, long ago, before the Muses conquered the pantheon, there was a young prince named Aephius, and he was madly in love.  Yet before he was madly in love, he was lonely, (despite his countless efforts) unable to find a woman worthy of his devotion. Renowned for being the most handsome man in ...

8 likes 14 comments 14
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Best Friends

Submitted to Contest #170

Warning: death and grief.Years ago we had a plan: Get a puppy, just get a puppy, preferably a rescue or giveaway. We named that puppy Brandi and this is her story."Mom, we want another dog," my boys told me out of the blue, "Rufus is getting old and we want him to have a companion, a puppy he can train before he gets too old." Made sense to me, I thought. My two boys were in their teens and the responsibility of a new puppy would mostly be theirs.My oldest son was very specific with his request, "I want a female so she and Rufus could have p...

8 likes 4 comments 4
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House & Home

Submitted to Contest #170

When I retell this story I’ll say it was her skin tone. Brown. Warm enough to be southern, deep enough to be local. Detroit-local were only the nape of her neck shown underneath a charcoal colored beanie and an oversized olive jacket that swallowed her figure in a way that let me know she preferred it this way. Highlighted against a wall of color she toyed with two variations of pink, sampling the hues against her skin, as if she meant to coat herself in them. Standing there just feet away from her I watched as she placed each rejected se...

8 likes 2 comments 2
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Practically Magic

Submitted to Contest #170

Now, this would be a pleasure to burn.  The thought seeps in midway through the final page. Garbage. No wonder this keeps getting rejected. Four years of my life and … rubbish! Ohh, I’m a writer—read my little story.  What a flipping joke. Should’ve been a rockstar—probably easier. I’ll take this godforsaken manuscript downstairs, strike a match, and kill the misery. Enough.  I snatch up the stack of paper refuse and dash toward the stairs, ready to get this reminder of wasted time gone. I see the pen at the exact sa...

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bad behavior and a white wedding

Submitted to Contest #170

The snow had stopped, and for the first time all winter, the mountain peeked out with yards of white draped over its shoulders like a cloak. The hill itself huddled in protection against the unusually cold that winter had become. I stood against the wrought iron balcony rail with a mug of hot apple cider, ready for the sounds of children sledding nearby as I knew they would soon. My own protection against the elements came in the form of a robe, thick and fluffy, and I could keep it for only a couple of hundred dollars if I paid the ho...

8 likes 0 comments 0
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Ambiguity

Submitted to Contest #170

The sunlight pours into the stained glass window, illuminating the small room in a beautiful rainbow of colors. Blues and greens danced across the shelves of books adoring the walls. This room, assumedly a study was my favorite room before the accident. Or so I'm told. I drop to my feet, and admire the tiny dust particles sparkling in the rays. Almost as if someone threw a cloud of glitter or stars. Ever since I lost my memory, the tiniest of things are what bring me peace. Trying to remember anything just leads to pain and frustration. ...

8 likes 1 comment 1
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An Arrangement at War Time.

Submitted to Contest #170

An Arrangement at War Time. In the land of Krakon where mythos exist was a time of war. At that land far on theside of it was a Coastal canyon and within that canyon was a small town of Capra where its local inhabitants are thick wide shouldered men and strong boned women, among them also lived migrated traders , crafters and artisans. The local animals there were tamed strays of cats and dogs along with Great Goats huge thick boned Goats in the size of a Horse and hair long enough to cover the side of its legs. It’s chloral consisted of...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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Querencia

Submitted to Contest #170

Locks of raven hair whip with the wind as the girl’s thin frame cascades like the torrential rainstorm that currently embraces the small town, gravity weighing her down, delivering her closer, and closer, and closer to the concrete driveway below. "We're leaving again tomorrow." "What? Already?" "It's part of our job, Bridgette. You know that." "Y-yeah...I guess so. How long will you be gone this time?" "I don't know. A few weeks, at most. Just try not to do anything stupid while we're not here." "Okay..." Thunder roars and...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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Sunny, Rainy Days

Submitted to Contest #170

The day I moved to America it was raining. Maybe if it were a cloudy, gloomy day it would have actually made me feel better in my quiet anger. A dreary setting to match my dreary mood. But no, despite the pouring rain, the sun was shining brilliantly. “Welcome to America, Lorraine,” the sun was saying, while the rain added “It’s highly unlikely to suit you.” This was confirmed the moment we left the crowded airport in Orlando, when the heat and humidity hit me like a train, adding to my bleakness. I feel my mood grow worse with each ...

7 likes 0 comments 0
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What They Left Behind

Submitted to Contest #170

Content Warning: This story contains small amounts of swearing and focuses on themes of grief and loss in the aftermath of a hate crime. There are also mentions of violence, though no violent scenes occur in this story. Please prioritize your own safety and comfort and read at your own discretion. Ever since the funerals, Tally’s had a bit more energy about him. He’ll wander around town, strutting into any building that’ll have him and doing anything he wants to. I think people are put-off by the way he’s been acting. His brother was...

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