Welcome to Week Three! Can you believe we’re at the halfway mark for the challenge?
You all did so well with your stories last week! There were so many interesting and unique ways you interpreted the prompt. It’s now the third week, so it’s time to do it again! Will your story have aliens? Zombies? Maybe it’ll have a dragon in it! Whatever you decide, we can’t wait to see what you come up with.
So, without further ado, here’s your next prompt!
Week Three Prompt – The Starting Sentence Prompt
Write a story that starts with the
following sentence: So this is what drowning feels like.
Wait…what’s a “Starting Sentence” prompt?
A sentence prompt is a prompt that uses a particular sentence. It doesn’t matter where your story takes place, who’s in it, or what’s said. The only thing that matters is that your story must start with this sentence: So this is what drowning feels like.
Before you start writing, we have some important rules for you to follow.
Writing Rules
1. Please keep the content of the stories you post to a PG rating. Please avoid real curse words. Violence/fighting should be limited and purposeful. Please do not include any spice.
2. Your story must be 1,000 words or less, and must contain the prompt to be counted for the challenge. You’re not required to post it in order to “win” the challenge, but if you want it to count for your team, your story must be posted by Sunday at 11:59 PM ET, and you must include your team name.
Remember to scroll all the way to the bottom of the page and post your story as an “answer” to this question, not a “comment”. 🙂 You’re all doing such a great job! I’m so proud of all the stories you’ve posted.
Happy Writing!
Will you notice if someone is like 1-25 words over the 1000 word limit (asking for a friend hahaha)
what if i accidently posted my story as a comment last week lol? does it still count?
Hey Izzy and Ava,
If you accidentally post your story as a comment instead of an answer, you should get an email to alert you! It will still count for points for your team, but no one will be able to vote for it.
And, to answer your question for your friend 😉 As far as word count, for your story to count for the challenge, it does need to be 1,000 words or under. Great questions!
Team #1
Drowning by Ada Flannery
So this is what drowning feels like.
Not the flailing, screaming kind they show in movies. No, this is quieter. Slower. It begins with wonder, awe and hope. You dive in with purpose, chasing something unseen, something beautiful, forbidden or both. The water is cool at first, welcoming, folding around you like a second skin. You go deep, deeper than planned. The surface light fractures above you, turning the world into shifting shards of gold and blue. Then the glow fades. The water grows colder. Heavier. Pressure builds in your ears and chest, surrounding you like a tightening vice. The world turns darker with every stroke.
And for some reason, you keep going.
At first, there’s still hope. You tell yourself you can make it back. Just kick hard enough. Just stay calm. Just a little farther. You picture bursting through the surface, sunlight flooding your face, sweet air rushing into your lungs. You imagine the shoreline in the distance, soft sand, solid ground. You imagine a hand reaching into the water, gripping yours. You imagine rescue.
But your legs are tired. Slow. Your muscles ache like they’ve been replaced with iron. The tank strapped to your back shudders once, lets out a hollow hiss. The last breath waits inside it, warm and stale. You cradle it in your chest like something sacred, something final. As long as you hold it, you’re still alive.
Your lungs begin to scream. Not whisper, scream. Each second stretches, taut and unbearable. You try to focus. Try to remember. Something from when you were younger, swimming class. You were eight. “Follow the bubbles,” the instructor said. “They always rise. They’ll show you the way up.”
So you release a breath. Just a little. Silver bubbles drift upward—or sideways, or maybe downward—you can’t tell anymore. The water presses against your skull. Your eyes sting in the dark. You reach for the bubbles, slow and clumsy, your fingers slicing through nothing.
You don’t get far.
The final bit of air slips from your lips. The pressure collapses inward. The water rushes in, filling your mouth, your throat, your lungs. It’s like swallowing fire. A sharp, burning cold that drowns everything else. You try to cough, to scream, to resist. Your body jerks, spasms, claws at the void.
And then…. stillness.
Your limbs go slack. The panic falls away like a shed skin. Your heartbeat slows, heavy and distant, like it’s echoing from somewhere far outside your body. The ache in your lungs fades. There’s only numbness now, and a strange, floating calm.
You no longer know which way is up.
The dark around you thickens into velvet. Not terrifying. Not peaceful. Just… quiet. You drift. Suspended. Dying becomes less of a moment and more of a slipping. Like falling asleep in a room that’s gone cold.
And in those last seconds, something stirs behind your eyes.
You remember sunlight, real sunlight, on your skin, warm and golden, the way it made everything glow. The sound of laughter echoing through a canyon. The feeling of a blanket pulled over your shoulders by hands you trusted. The curve of a smile. The weight of a dog’s head in your lap. A name spoken softly. Yours.
Then even memory lets go.
The cold cradles you now, the deep welcoming you like a long-lost child. There is no fear left. No pain. No breath.
You are no longer swimming.
No longer sinking.
You are simply gone.
Stop it, Ada, you’re making me cry. But seriously, this is wonderful–very unique story and bold to shoot for second-person! You took it from just a vignette of drowning to a real story with your word choice and the little details you reveal about the person. Great job!
Thanks so much, I wasn’t sure how well this would do, I’m glad you like it !
Wait so if we like accidentally post our stories as a comment here, will it count or be ignored?