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 Reepicheep
Smart Science Girl
So this is what drowning feels like. Not physically drowning; thank God I don’t have experience with that. Academically drowning is more my style.
I slam my laptop shut, blocking the B- from view and possibly cracking my screen. The guy at the table across from me in the college library scowls, and I resist the childish urge to stick my tongue out.
Really? A B minus?
Taylor flounces into the library and sags into the chair across from me, tossing her smooth blond hair over her shoulder. “How’d you do on the chem test?”
“You don’t want to know.”
“Aw, come on, can’t be that bad. You’re way better at school than me, and even I passed.”
Of course Taylor wouldn’t understand. “Fine. An 82.”
“See? You did great.” She opens a granola bar and munches on it.
“I don’t know if I’m cut out for college.”
“Girl, why do you care so much?”
Yup, someone like Taylor doesn’t understand what it’s like to go from high school valedictorian to a B-. “Forget it.”
She shrugs. “Whatever. But you’ve gotta lighten up. College isn’t about grades, it’s about making friends and living life and—oh my goodness, Ryan!” She shrieks, and I sigh as she jumps up and races towards another friend.
It’s easy for Taylor to say grades don’t matter, when she has enough friends to fill the Mayflower. What do I have if not my grades?
I ease my laptop open, relieved to see the screen is still intact. Maybe I should email the professor, ask about extra credit.
Why didn’t I just…go to community college? At least then I’d have been close to home and a few people who actually knew me.
I delete the email and start again, and as I do, someone walks up. “D-do you mind if I j-j-join you?”
Surprised, I look up to see Jacob, an old high school acquaintance. Weird; I can’t ever remember having a conversation with him, other than a “hi” in the hallway. “Hey, sure, go ahead.”
He sits down, sipping his coffee. “Y-you okay? You l-l-looked stressed.”
Something about his presence is comforting. I’m not sure why; he’s practically a stranger. But his face looks genuinely concerned.
I guess that’s why I’m honest with him. “I didn’t do as well as I was hoping on my chemistry test, and I’m worried about my grades.”
He grins. “Still s-s-stressing about grades while the r-r-rest of us have fun.” Then he leans forward. “Was Taylor giving you a hard time?”
“Not really.”
He leans back again with a nod, and we lapse into silence.
Why did he come over here, anyway? I want to ask, but the words feel too awkward so they stick in my throat, making it impossible to speak.
So I rewrite my email, and Jacob sips his coffee, until finally the silence is too much and I blurt out the question at the forefront of my mind, “What if I can’t do this college thing?”
Jacob’s eyes widen, and heat floods my face. Why am I dumping my biggest insecurity onto a random guy?
But now that I’ve started, I can’t stop. “Sorry. It’s just…I came to this school because of the science program, and I thought I could be successful and I just…I don’t know if I can do it. I’m afraid I’ll fail and have to go home and admit I’m not as smart as everyone thought and start bagging groceries or something.”
I expect Jacob to stare, or to get up and walk away. Instead, he smiles. “Avery, n-n-no one c-c-cares about your grades. E-e-even if that did happen, y-y-you’d still be you. Y-y-you’re more than a chemistry test.”
I sigh, because he doesn’t understand either. Who am I if not the smart science girl?
` “H-h-h-hey, do y-y-you know why I came over here?”
I shrug. “Felt sorry for me?”
“Nope.” His gaze flicks away. “I’ve been meaning to talk to you f-f-f-for a while now, actually. D-d-do you remember that t-t-time in ninth grade, when we were giving p-p-presentations?”
I frown. Science presentations. Jacob was presenting and some jerks in the back row were mocking his stutter. And I…
My face warms. I was so annoyed, especially since a couple girls kept giggling every time one of the boys said something. Jacob got more and more flustered, and the teacher was grading papers and hadn’t noticed…
And I’d whirled around in my chair and snapped, “Shut up!”, so loud the whole class started laughing, and the teacher put down her pen and laid into me about interrupting presentations, and those popular jerks had turned it into a whole joke about me and Jacob being secretly in love.
It was one of my worst high school memories, and I can’t count the times I’ve looked back and wished I’d stayed silent.
I look back up, giving Jacob a half-smile. “Yeah. I remember.”
“I n-n-never said th-th-thanks,” he says quietly. “Th-th-they were awful t-t-to you, and I wanted to thank you, but I d-d-didn’t want t-t-to make it w-w-worse.”
I shrug. “It was nothing.”
“No, i-i-it wasn’t nothing. You cared, A-a-a-avery. That’s who you are. N-n-not s-s-s-some grade.”
I want to believe him, but all I remember is a smart science girl who got humiliated. “Thanks, Jacob.”
He watches me, and I think he can tell I don’t believe him. “W-w-why don’t you t-t-take a b-b-break t-t-tonight? We could d-d-do something t-t-together. S-s-see a m-m-m-movie or s-s-something. If y-y-you w-w-want to.” His stutter seems stronger now, his face redder.
And I remember the grateful look he shot me that day in ninth grade, and the way he used to smile at me when I saw him across the cafeteria, and I wonder how I missed this. Could I have been so obsessed with being the smart science girl, that I’d missed something right in front of me?
I gently close my laptop and smile. “You know what? I’d love that.”
Wonderful story! It is so easy to be unable to see beyond the image you have of yourself. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for reading! <3
“she has enough friends to fill the Mayflower” – I may need to start using this phrase in regular life.
I liked your story. And not just because of the name of the main character.
It was sweet, but not saccharine. And very understandable and relatable. (Sort of – it’s been a few decades since college, but feelings like that still do come up.)
I also thought thie line “you’re more than a chemistry test” was some nice insight.
And the use of the prompt worked well.
I would NOT give this story a B-. 🙂
Wait so if we like accidentally post our stories as a comment here, will it count or be ignored?