WRITING PROMPTS #499: Comic Relief 😂

[Isabella Peralta]

Write a short story and WIN $250!

Comic Relief 😂 With spring finally here in the UK, I’ve been gravitating towards things that fill me with color, warmth, and joy — and that includes stories that make me smile and laugh. As the days get longer and the weather gets hotter, let’s welcome the lighter side of literature! This week’s prompts dive into the funny and the unexpected. Include a grand reveal, a surprise twist, or an unforgettable moment that’ll leave our judges howling with laughter. Do you have a story within you that can stop us in our tracks? Write a story with the goal of making your reader laugh. Include the line “I don’t understand” or “I should’ve known” in your story. Write a story in which a character's true self or identity is revealed. Center your story around an unexpected criminal or accidental lawbreaker. Write a story from the POV of a child, teenager, or senior citizen. Compete for $250 and a spot in Prompted 💰 Reedsy challenges you to create a short story based on one of these prompts. The winner will be featured on Reedsy Prompts and receive $250 via PayPal! We’ll also consider your submission for a future issue of our lit mag, Prompted. (Grab a free digital copy of our past issues here!) The latest winner 🏆 Congrats to Ariel Sanchez! Their short story, "Iteration #458," is based on the prompt: "Start or end your story with the sound of a heartbeat." You can read all 373 entries to the "What Makes Us Human? with Susan Chang" edition of our contest here. The details 🔎 Here’s the fine print for Prompts: choose one of our prompts from this week's contest. Write a short story between 1,000 and 3,000 words, submit it from your Reedsy Prompts profile, and pay the $5 entry fee before 11:59 p.m. EST on April 17. See our Terms of Use and FAQ for other details. Pro tip: If you don’t want to submit to the contest, you can still post your story on your Prompts profile for free or join our Discord community to share your work with fellow writers! Looking forward to reading your stories, Isabella, Prompts Lead @ Reedsy P.S. Are you interested in going behind the scenes of the Reedsy Prompts contest as a judge? Head here for more information.

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