Mini-Contest #63
The 63rd OTP mini-contest launched in November 2024. This mini-contest asked contestants to write a story between 25 and 50 words long that did not use the letter “r” anywhere.
We called this mini-contest “Do Not Talk Like A Pirate Day”. We got quite a few entries in which characters spoke like pirates. One of them even got published. There’s a lesson in there somewhere, but I haven’t figured out what it is.
We received 145 entries. Here are the winning entries, then the honorable mentions. Four of the six winners are new to OTP.
Third Place by Jessica Wilson (new to OTP)
Walking to the school canteen with Leo, I know he doesn’t have any money to spend on baked delights. He still wants to smell the yeasty doughnuts, even if he can’t taste them. I shuffle my coins back into my bag and inhale with him, content with scent and imagination.
Second Place by Megan Hippler (published in mini-contest #51)
Thomas left the law office disappointed. Seven times now, he’d sought someone to help him expel the ghost in his new home. Seven times, he’d been laughed out of a building, but the ghost had been adamant. It would not leave without a legally binding eviction notice.
First Place by Leyelle Mesa-Graham (new to OTP)
Speak of small things.
I don’t question the ways of the galaxy.
We call them sages, yet they can’t solve the puzzles that haunt us.
Don’t tell me how many moons dance in the heavens.
Tell me how to put a child to sleep and keep out the demons.
Honorable Mentions (no money, just fame)
Three other entries earned honorable mentions.
“I won’t kiss Nana goodbye!” my little boy exclaimed. “I don’t do that!”
“Today,” I said, “it’s what we do.”
“No!” he shouted.
So I was shocked when he stepped up on the padded stool, leaned into the coffin, and kissed my mom. “Nana’s mustache,” he explained, “is finally gone!”
by Marie Anderson (published in mini-contests #59 and #61)
“You live on this houseboat?” the kid in a zombie costume asked.
“Galleon,” the man huffed.
“Cool outfit.”
“‘Tis a velvet waistcoat!”
“Halloween candy?”
“No! Begone, ye scallywag!”
As the kid left, the galleon faded into ghostly mist, the ship’s undead captain howling in annoyance. He hated this holiday.
by Gordon Sun (new to OTP)
It was an audacious heist. Walking into the exhibition, the detective scanned the walls. The paintings on show had been denuded of almost all tint and pigment. He closed his notebook. It was a black and white case.
by Suzan Lindsay Randle (new to OTP)
Congratulations to the winners and our sincere thanks to everyone who entered the mini-contest.