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Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of lgbtq+ short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

150+ Lgbtq+ Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Discover incredible works of queer fiction right here, on this page of fresh new LGBTQ+ stories.

Lgbtq+ Short Stories – Page 4 of 10

What remains after

Submitted to Contest #329

CW: Suicide or self harm, Mental health The art studio was always the coldest at 3 AM. When the radiators gave up. When the November wind found every crack in the windows.Eli didn't mind. He barely noticed anymore.His hands moved across the canvas in the dim light of a single desk lamp. Mixing prussian blue with burnt umber. Trying to capture the exact shade of Jamie's eyes. That particular afternoon light. The kind that came through his bedroom window around four o'clock.He'd gotten it wrong again.Eli stepped back from the easel. Paint-stai...

14 likes 1 comment 1
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Rest & Ruin

Submitted to Contest #328

Lilith’s feet touch the ground, tickled by each blade of grass. She shivers as a sharp gust of wind cuts through her wings. After a long day of the Chase, they’re hot to the touch. She knows she’ll have mere moments before they show up. She unsheathes her dagger and pulls out some fruit, sitting below a tree. From there, she’s out of the empty clearing where she’s most vulnerable, but just close enough to watch the moon reflect on the pond in the field. She knows better than to lead them here two nights in a row, but last night had just bee...

9 likes 2 comments 2
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Thrown-out Magazines

Submitted to Contest #328

“When I think of my grandmother, it is weekend dinners.” A choked-up chuckle was followed by some sniffles; Clara dabbed at her eye before continuing the memories. “It wasn’t just dinner, it was a whole affair. All these new recipes from those homesteading magazines – every week there was a new one to try out. Or multiple to try out,” she added. “It was always really delicious, so it wasn’t like there were any left-overs afterwards. No matter how much she cooked. And those magazines – they were something close to holy to her. They weren’t to...

4 likes 1 comment 1
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Fool's Gold

Submitted to Contest #328

The moment was supposed to be glorious. Selene’s father had promised it would be, with all of the great lords gathered in one place. Hands came together in crackles of noise as the great hall filled with thunderous applause that grew louder the longer Adam knelt on the ground in front of the throne. But seeing him here, like this, was hardly the great victory that had been foretold. His head slowly rose from where it was bowed in supplication, and the corded tendons in his neck tightened as those green eyes met hers. Selene did not see a tra...

6 likes 1 comment 1
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Orange Cats & Fanny Packs: A Halloween Miracle

Submitted to Contest #327

“Give me a boost,” Izzie says frantically, tilting her head toward the tiny orange kitten wedged between several branches near the top of the old oak tree. Its mews are sharp and desperate, piercing through the rustling leaves and cool night air. “I know I’m currently in a Kim Possible costume,” I say, giving her my best I’m serious face, “but this is not the kind of danger I imagined when I agreed to go out with you tonight. There is no way either of us is climbing all the way up there.” “Come on, Wren,” she says, drawing out my name, putti...

13 likes 6 comments 6
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Turtle and the Not-Cat

Submitted to Contest #327

The storm had teeth that night. It gnawed at the eaves of the old Victorian home, making the whole house shake.Amelia sat by the hearth, reading a romance paperback—the kind of book that made Turtle roll his eyes, even though he secretly enjoyed skimming through the smutty parts when no one was watching. She held the book in one hand, the other cradling a mug of something sweet and decadent, more marshmallow than beverage. Turtle often thought that both he and his mistress thrived in cold, dreary weather.Turtle was a cat, a familiar. His fur...

9 likes 5 comments 5
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Look What the Cat Dragged In

Submitted to Contest #327

Tuesday, December 25, 2010 "Christie if you wanted to make this all about you then, congratulations because look what you've done." Mom spats with something between a sob and just blubbering. For context, we are all sitting around the dinner table at our annual family Christmas dinner with the extended family, most people are mid-bite because of my mom's noises or because of my recent declaration. Three minutes earlier, I had just come out to my extended family as being bisexual. I had told my siblings a few months ago, but I had told Nana f...

5 likes 1 comment 1
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Rescue Dog

Submitted to Contest #327

CW: Physical violence, abuse, explicit sexual phrases It was only 11 am and already she had broken 6 rules. She had spoken to the woman who lived on a boat. (1. Thou shalt stay away from unnatural women.) The Book called these single women ‘wild’ but they had begun to wear the word like a badge of honour. Cathy was curious - why did these irrational women always have tattoos inked into their skin? 2: Thou shalt not speak to branded women. Of course she had not branded herself. It was a punishable offence. But she dreamt of displaying a smal...

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Bad date, Good day

Submitted to Contest #326

Alice flattened her hands against her hips and took a deep breath. She smoothed the wrinkles out of her apron, pulled her notepad and pen out of her pocket, and pushed the door open. The staff area had been quiet but as soon as she was on the restaurant floor she could hear everyone’s conversations overlapping. She did her best to ignore the noise and stepped up to the bar. “Hi Alice, table 4 are waiting for you,” Margie said with a sunny smile. Margie was the hostess tonight; she’d been on shift for 4 hours already and greeting guests with ...

17 likes 2 comments 2
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An Attempt to be Normal

Submitted to Contest #326

My parents sat across from me, my mother glaring into my eyes, my father looking at the floor. They sat there waiting for me to respond. But what could I say? It wasn’t like I had any choice in the matter. It wasn’t like I could defend myself, say that I’d be better, that I’d work on it. I knew I couldn’t work on it. I knew I couldn’t “be better.” This was the third time it had happened. Well. The third time I had been caught at least.“Well?” my mother asked, “What do you have to say for yourself?”“I’ll do whatever it is you want me to do,” ...

11 likes 6 comments 6
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Becoming Her

Submitted to Contest #326

TW: Sexual abuse, physical violence. In silence, he could almost pretend the body wasn't his. That the thick, unyielding, veined body, bristling with hair in all the wrong places, was someone else's. Muscle hung at bad angles, the shoulders blunted and broad. Every movement reminded him that he was trapped inside something not built to carry his mind. Fingers scraped against tables in awkward arcs, wrists bent under gravity’s insistence, knees buckling when he tried to walk with any semblance of grace. Sweat pooled beneath arms, along the sp...

7 likes 1 comment 1
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And They Lived Happily Ever After...

Submitted to Contest #325

Long ago, in a land whose name has been lost to time, there was a prince and a bounty hunter. Alexander could not be less interested in the beautiful maidens he is to choose from to be his bride. One after the other, they file through, flaunting their beauty and grace, oblivious to the fact that their prince charming has not an ounce of interest in marrying any of them. Despite his quite vocal disinterest in fulfilling his parents' wishes, they still believe that he will find a wife among these girls. He does not have anything against the m...

10 likes 1 comment 1
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Heather

Submitted to Contest #325

Heather An Ancient Oak on an old hillA forbidden loveTransformation. The large oak tree stood silently on the hill overlooking the little town of Franklin. It had been there for eons before the first peoples had ever set foot on dry ground. When the settlers came from across the sea, they voted that this hill was to be used to bury their dead. They took a day and had the priest consecrate the entire hill. It is said that when approached the large oak, he hesitated in his ministrations and suddenly fell ill. About a week later, he passed away...

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What Color is the Sky today?

Submitted to Contest #325

contains references to drugs (marijuana) and former drug abuse, and heavy mentions of hallucinations/Psychosis symptoms Lara walked from the door of the Blitz Cafe and Dispensary, coffees in hand, pre-rolls in pocket. The Cafe and Dispensary was her last stop before heading into the studio- she thought to bring Frances a coffee to stay on her good side, as recording was already behind. It wasn’t her fault, though, but it was still always good to be on your editor’s good side, she supposed. Frances was 70 and was an acclaimed satirical auth...

8 likes 1 comment 1
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Tideborn

Submitted to Contest #324

The night I wash ashore, the stars look like barnacles—small and stubborn, clinging to a dark hull I can’t name. Waves unmake themselves around my ribs. The tide tries to pull me back, then changes its mind, foaming away like a friend unsure if they’re still invited.I crawl from the water on my knees, palms, and pride. I have legs again; they remember me like old scars remember knives—with a twitch.The lighthouse above me turns its slow white eye. Its beam slices the fog, leaving a metallic taste in the air. I press my cheek to a tide pool a...

7 likes 2 comments 2
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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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