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
Contests
Magazine
FAQ

Set your story just before midnight or dawn.

Posted in Short Story on Apr 4, 2025

Submissions are closed

Make sure you don't miss our next contest by creating your free Reedsy account.

Sign in with Google
Sign in with Facebook

Or use an email address:

Why not check out our active contest?

✍️ 72 stories

The last day

Submitted to Contest #297

The clock on the wall read 5:10 AM. The dark sky, once a deep navy, gradually lightened, signaling the approach of dawn. Alexander had spent most of his working life as a bus driver, typically starting his shifts before sunrise, especially during the colder months when the days were shorter. He favoured the sunrise over the sunset, probably because it leads into the day instead of the night. However, everything changed when he was diagnosed with lung cancer, which ultimately compelled him to stop working and focus on his treatment. After end...

47 likes 31 comments 31
Read story

Beggar's Choice

Submitted to Contest #297

I’m not supposed to play you this record. You don’t have school tomorrow, but that’s not why. My mother would come into my room on Friday’s before midnight and she’d tell me to go get the record player. I had to set it on the floor, and plug it in. I had to look at the record. She’d make me stare at it. Memorize it. Until I could see the tiny dots that made up the letters. The illustration on the front would move from side to side and I’d think it was going to come to life. I’d imagine the tiger turning real and swallowing me up. When I coul...

26 likes 13 comments 13
Read story

The Wind Reader's Gifts - World Voyages of the Destiny's Dreams

Submitted to Contest #297

Anya spoke to the sea and sky. "Sister Dawn, I hear your whisper and I see you getting closer. Will you bring us wind today?""We have been here a long time in these hot days, with the ship' sails waiting for the wind. We are desperate."Anya was the Storyteller of the Blue Lantern, on the wooden sailing ship called Destiny's Dreams, voyaging over the seas in the 1800s.She was born deep in the wilderness, a child of the South American jungles and mountains. There ancient stories passed down by word of mouth carried wisdom and history for her p...

25 likes 21 comments 21
Read story

Just Before Midnight

Submitted to Contest #297

The first thing I feel is the weight of the air pressing down on my chest. Not pain - pressure. Like the night itself sat down on me and refused to budge. I open my eyes to the ceiling, waiting to remember who I am, where I am, and why the hell I can't breathe.Then I heard the pipes gurgling. The roof whispering. The walls stretching like old skin. And I know...Ah. Home sweet fucking hell.I must’ve fallen asleep at some point. Could’ve been an hour ago or yesterday morning for all I know. Time is a goddamn riddle in this house. Days blur int...

25 likes 33 comments 33
Read story

At the Edge of Everything, We Skip Rocks

Shortlisted for Contest #297 ⭐️

Jack listened to his rock skip once, twice, across the lake before sinking into black water—and felt something of himself sink with it.The freezing bite of the water swirling around his bare ankles could almost distract him from Scott beside him, using the torch in his mouth to see by as he sought out smooth rocks. 'Something with a groove,' he always liked to proselytise, 'Y'need that notch for leverage.'There was a pitched, muffled 'ha!' of satisfaction at his left as Scott spotted something suitable. Jack's eyes caught the torch shifting ...

23 likes 17 comments 17
Read story

Red Alert Part 1

Submitted to Contest #297

CW: some swear words and intense bits of medical attention“3...2...1... Happy New Year!” Shouting and laughing can be heard from all angles of the roof-top. Branden and Kailyn were so stoked to start the new year off right with all of their friends. It is 2045 after all. The early 2010's throw-back party was exactly what they needed. Mustache necklaces, Tumblr festival aesthetic covered the tables, they adorned skinny jeans, flower crowns and Vans. Katy Perry, Taylor Swift, and Flo Rida on repeat. Takis, sushi burritos, and Pretzel M&Ms....

21 likes 17 comments 17
Read story

Essy 37 Head of State

Submitted to Contest #297

I wasn’t chosen to pull the trigger but would do so had my number been called. Surprisingly, after all the years of despair and decline we had kept the tradition of the weekly lottery. The country tuned in to hear the cheery voice announce the winning numbers. Unknown to the public, the first number called last week determined who would do the deed. If no one had an exact match, whoever was closest was tagged to be the one who must assassinate the dictator.We had little time to waste and a lot of moving pieces as the country slept ignorantly...

18 likes 13 comments 13
Read story

The First Night of Forever

Submitted to Contest #297

“I can promise youYou'll stay as beautifulWith dark hairAnd soft skinForever...”- The ToadiesTristan held Izzy’s hand as they walked around the lake beneath the dim light of the crescent moon, the bones just beneath her skin seemingly as delicate as those of a baby bird. He gave her palm a light squeeze and she returned it with a tiny smile as they both looked away from one another, out over the still water.“Was he really like they say?” They had been discussing King George in the car on the way out there to Hiawatha Lake. Izzy had a master'...

16 likes 16 comments 16
Read story

Dream Portent

Submitted to Contest #297

Minutes wasted in the moment heading for the fence and sailing forth as I fumble trying to stay in the saddle. Bile in my throat as I dare not look behind me. The horse’s ears flick back and for a moment my grip on the reins falter as we sail over another obstacle. Wind causes tears to stream from my eyes, blurring my vision as we sail over yet another jump. Panic rises with every stride as we struggle to increase the distance from whatever or whoever is chasing us. The reins become sodden with sweat and my grip slips away and my body tumble...

14 likes 6 comments 6
Read story

Pre-Dawn Flights of Fancy

Submitted to Contest #297

As I grew older, my sleep became more fragmented. My cousin once told me this was totally and entirely normal."When we were cave people, there was first sleep, which lasted 3-5 hours. After first sleep, we would take a turn watching the cave. Then later, there was second sleep--when someone else watched over the cave and its resting inhabitants." It was a plausible theory, and I believed my cousin--he was a history teacher. Of course, it could have also been one of those fallacious arguments along the lines of: It's on the internet; therefor...

14 likes 11 comments 11
Read story

The Final Run of the Hawaiian Sol

Submitted to Contest #297

Tim Holl needed more time, more money and a gun.“Damn Greg!” Can’t this tin can go any faster?” The salt spray wind tossed Tim’s blonde hair as he looked back with wide eyes at the impending doom chasing them. Narrow at the shoulder, and wide at the hip, Tim looked like he should behind a desk, and not gripping the gunwale of a shadow boat racing against time, and fate across a dark ocean. Tim and the boat captain Greg might have been the slowest rum runners in the entire county of San Diego, but tonight was their big break, and if everythin...

14 likes 18 comments 18
Read story

She Would Awaken the Next Dawn

Submitted to Contest #297

The floor creaked under her before she moved, like the old boards could feel her shifting into lucidity. Pale blue light seeped through the cracks in the shutters, just enough to say the world hadn’t ended in the night. Lena sat up, slowly, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. The mattress gave a tired sigh, and the wood beneath her groaned like it had something to say. She ignored it. The familiar bite of morning air hit her as she crossed the room barefoot, the worn planks feeling cold and smooth under her soles. Over by the dresser...

11 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

Best Laid Plans

Submitted to Contest #297

Ice crystals cling to the inside of my nose, and I blow hot air onto my bare hands as I run. Perhaps run is an overstatement. My seventy-six year-old body hasn’t truly run in twenty years, and it’s screaming at me to stop doing it now. But the sounds of my pursuers echo through the night as they crash through the underbrush behind me–running is now less of a choice and more of a Pavlovian response. Even if I wanted to give up–reason with them, bribe, maybe beg–I don’t think I could stop my legs now; they are working on pure fury as a lifeti...

11 likes 6 comments 6
Read story

Lady Neera’s Bargain

Submitted to Contest #297

Once upon a time, in a distant kingdom beyond the river and the trees, there was a princess known for her infectious smile and candid words—quite different from the women at other courts. As winter faded, she found herself facing a midnight execution. That evening, just like every other night, the king—her father—locked her in her chamber and turned away without a word. “Princess!” a gruff voice shouted from out of sight, the same one she heard every night.She rushed to the nearby balcony, shoved open the double doors that stood taller than...

11 likes 3 comments 3
Read story

Dare to Unravel the Universe

Submitted to Contest #297

Nikki feels the familiar pull of her night fading as the first fingers of color paint the horizon. Fear and excitement intermingle as she anticipates this meeting. She chooses to gaze at the remaining twinkles of stars instead of the sunrise as a last attempt to hold on to the night. The ocean breeze brings the scent of decaying seaweed and salty brine. Like the emotions swirling inside her, the good mixes with the bad. When Rory arrives she plans to voice her anxiety about how she needs to change but fears the repercussions. If Rory can’t a...

10 likes 1 comment 1
Read story

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story with a number or time in the title.

Short Story – 93 stories

Write a story where someone must make a split-second decision.

Dramatic – 38 stories

Set your story over the course of a few minutes.

Short Story – 61 stories

Write a story that includes the line “What time is it?”

Dialogue – 69 stories

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