Mini-Contest #62
The 62nd OTP mini-contest launched in October 2024. This mini-contest asked contestants to write a story between 25 and 50 words long that made the reader feel the same emotion(s) that a group of people in the story feel.
We received 89 entries. Here are the winning entries, then the honorable mentions. Four of the six winners are new to OTP.
Third Place by Lisa Lopez (published in three other mini-contests)
I was rooting for the visiting Yankees, but when I saw the Dodger slugger lying on the dirt, wincing after a stolen base attempt, I fell silent with the fans. After careful assessment, trainers helped him up. I cheered along with nervous Dodger fans. For a moment, numbers didn’t matter.
Second Place by Doug Jacquier (published in Issue 37 and also three other mini-contests)
This desolate rock is home to the Limbo of the Fathers. It’s close to the edge of Hell but we dead men can see Heaven in the far distance. Here we speculate endlessly on whether we were the best father we could have been. Eternity awaits our answer.
First Place by Jennifer Della Zanna (new to OTP)
A man shoved in front of me at the register and waved a gun. “Nobody move!”
In the history of diners, never had one been so still.
He pointed at the register. “Money—move!”
The cashier fainted. I swung my purse. Connected! The gun skittered away.
He ran. They cheered.
Honorable Mentions (no money, just fame)
Three other entries earned honorable mentions.
The inmates’ breath rose in white clouds as they waited in a line against the brick wall. A Red-Tailed Hawk flew into the recently vacated exercise yard and landed on the bench press bar. Eighty-six convicts watched silently as the hawk took flight and glided effortlessly over the wall.
by Jeff Woods (new to OTP)
The armed men stood at the fork in the road, wolfish eyes appraising our caravan of women and children. My mother tightened her grip on my trembling hand. We did not break stride as we approached, for the well was dry and the river lay behind them.
by Jamie Hess (new to OTP)
They rush to the tree and grab the gift they’re certain is theirs. However, the name-tags sit mixed in a pile. Football candle for Mom? Scented jersey for Liam? Pop-star cooler for Dad? Beer shirt for Olivia? In their confusion, they wonder if they shouldn’t have spiked the milk.
by Jennifer Jorgensen (new to OTP)
Congratulations to the winners and our sincere thanks to everyone who entered the mini-contest.