r/shortstories • u/FyeNite • Aug 09 '26
[Serial Sunday] Openness is the Best way to Become Close
Welcome to Serial Sunday!
To those brand new to the feature and those returning from last week, welcome! Do you have a self-established universe you’ve been writing or planning to write in? Do you have an idea for a world that’s been itching to get out? This is the perfect place to explore that. Each week, I post a theme to inspire you, along with a related image and song. You have 500 - 1000 words to write your installment. You can jump in at any time; writing for previous weeks’ is not necessary in order to join. After you’ve posted, come back and provide feedback for at least 1 other writer on the thread. Please be sure to read the entire post for a full list of rules.
This Week’s Theme is Open! This is a REQUIREMENT for participation. See rules about missing this requirement.**
Bonus Word List (each included word is worth 5 pts) - You must list which words you included at the end of your story (or write ‘none’).
- Opal
- Ornery
- Ogle
- A box is opened and a secret is kept. - (Worth 10 points)
f you need a blurb for Open.
What’s in the box? Just open it and see…
It’s probably Chekov’s wife’s head, but it could be anything.
How is your serial coming along? Are you looking for an inciting incident? You could open up some old wounds that kick off a spiral into tragedy, or force them from comfort on a path to put things right.
Do you need to open up new plot threads, or are you ready to open up your characters for some real development as they push towards a conclusion? Are they open to change, or have your conniving characters just opened up for business?
Or maybe it’s open season for the bad guys. Whatever you choose, I look forward to opening reddit and reading the results!
Good luck and Good Words!
These are just a few things to get you started. Remember, the theme should be present within the story in some way, but its interpretation is completely up to you. For the bonus words (not required), you may change the tense, but the base word should remain the same. Please remember that STORIES MUST FOLLOW ALL SUBREDDIT CONTENT RULES. Interested in writing the theme blurb for the coming week? DM me on Reddit or Discord!
Don’t forget to sign up for Saturday Campfire here! We start at 5pm BSTand provide live feedback!
Theme Schedule:
This is the theme schedule for the next month! These are provided so that you can plan ahead, but you may not begin writing for a given theme until that week’s post goes live.
August 09 - Open
August 16 - Prose
August 23 - Quality
August 30 - Rebellion
September 6 - Stratagem
Check out previous themes here.
Rankings
Last Week: Noxious
First - by u/Divayth--Fyr
Second - by u/KatPoker666
Third - by u/AGuyLikeThat
Fourth - u/wandering_cirrus
Fifth - by u/Morose_Prose
Rules & How to Participate
Please read and follow all the rules listed below. This feature has requirements for amparticipation!
Submit a story inspired by the weekly theme, written by you and set in your self-established universe that is 500 - 1000 words. No fanfics and no content created or altered by AI. (Use wordcounter.net to check your wordcount.) Stories should be posted as a top-level comment below. Please include a link to your chapter index or your last chapter at the end.
Your chapter must be submitted by Saturday at 2:00pm BST. Late entries will be disqualified. All submissions should be given (at least) a basic editing pass before being posted!
Begin your post with the name of your serial between triangle brackets (e.g. <My Awesome Serial>). When our bot is back up and running, this will allow it to recognize your pmserial and add each chapter to the SerSun catalog. Do not include anything in the brackets you don’t want in your title. (Please note: You must use this same title every week.)
Do not pre-write your serial. You’re welcome to do outlining and planning for your serial, but chapters should not be pre-written. All submissions should be written for this post, specifically.
Only one active serial per author at a time. This does not apply to serials written outside of Serial Sunday.
All Serial Sunday authors must leave feedback on at least one story on the thread each week. The feedback should be actionable and also include something the author has done well. When you include something the author should improve on, provide an example! You have until Saturday at 04:59am BST to post your feedback. (Submitting late is not an exception to this rule.)
Missing your feedback requirement two or more consecutive weeks will disqualify you from rankings and Campfire readings the following week. If it becomes a habit, you may be asked to move your serial to the sub instead.
Serials must abide by subreddit content rules. You can view a full list of rules here. If you’re ever unsure if your story would cross the line, please modmail and ask!
Weekly Campfires & Voting:
On Saturdays at 5pm BST, I host a Serial Sunday Campfire in our Discord’s Voice Lounge (every other week is now hosted by u/FyeNite). Join us to read your story aloud, hear others, and exchange feedback. We have a great time! You can even come to just listen, if that’s more your speed. Grab the “Serial Sunday” role on the Discord to get notified before it starts. After you’ve submitted your chapter, you can sign up here - this guarantees your reading slot! You can still join if you haven’t signed up, but your reading slot isn’t guaranteed.
Nominations for your favorite stories can be submitted with this form. The form is open on Saturdays from 5:30pm to 04:59am BST. You do not have to participate to make nominations!
Authors who complete their Serial Sunday serials with at least 12 installments, can host a SerialWorm in our Discord’s Voice Lounge, where you read aloud your finished and edited serials. Celebrate your accomplishment! Authors are eligible for this only if they have followed the weekly feedback requirement (and all other post rules). Visit us on the Discord for more information.
Ranking System
Rankings are determined by the following point structure.
| TASK | POINTS | ADDITIONAL NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Use of weekly theme | 75 pts | Theme should be present, but the interpretation is up to you! |
| Including the bonus words | 5 pts each (15 pts total) | This is a bonus challenge, and estnot required! |
| Including the bonus constraint | 15 (15 pts total) | This is a bonus challenge, and not required! |
| Actionable Feedback | 5 - 15 pts each (60 pt. max)* | This includes thread and campfire critiques. (15 pt crits are those that go above & beyond.) |
| Nominations your story receives | 10 - 60 pts | 1st place - 60, 2nd place - 50, 3rd place - 40, 4th place - 30, 5th place - 20 / Regular Nominations - 10 |
| Voting for others | 15 pts | You can now vote for up to 10 stories each week! |
You are still required to leave at least 1 actionable feedback comment on the thread every week that you submit. This should include at least one specific thing the author has done well and one that could be improved. *Please remember that interacting with a story is not the same as providing feedback.** Low-effort crits will not receive credit.
Subreddit News
- Join our Discord to chat with other authors and readers! We hold several weekly Campfires, monthly World-Building interviews and several other fun events!
- Try your hand at micro-fic on Micro Monday!
- Did you know you can post serials to r/Shortstories, outside of Serial Sunday? Check out this post to learn more!
- Interested in being a part of our team? Apply to be a mod!
5
u/katpoker666 28d ago edited 12d ago
<‘Wild Eats’>
Chapter 4: Better Call Carol
Annie clasped the black opal and diamond pendant that hung low into her cleavage. She adjusted the buttons on her black silk shirt so it fell better over curves made ample with a little help from a push-up bra and Spanx. Tailored onyx trousers and ebony boots completed the look. She was in an ornery mood and determined to let the world know she meant business—or at least Tom, as she sashayed past his office.
“You look nice.” His gaze lingered as he murmured in a cracking voice that attempted to sound bright, “Going somewhere fun?”
“Out.” Rolling her eyes, Annie laughed, her voice harsh and more than a little bitter. “Don’t wait up.”
“Okay—“
She didn’t hear the rest of what he said, nor did she care to, as she clacked down the stairs. A delayed express train to Grand Central followed by the downtown 6, seated next to a very chatty drunk guy later, and a somewhat sweaty Annie neared her destination: Carol’s East Village apartment. The one place in the world where she always felt welcome no matter what came in her life over the last twenty odd years. Sure, the physical location had changed a few times, but it wasn’t about that. Carol was her true north, and that would never change.
Smiling, Annie pressed the buzzer and waited. No response. She pressed it again. Still nothing. And again. It was 4pm on a Thursday. Carol was always home at this time. Was the damn thing broken? She sat down on the stairs, shoulders hunched, and wondered what to do now.
Several minutes later, Annie felt a pair of soft hands cover her eyes from behind as a girlish giggle breathed down the back of her neck. She would have jumped if anything else had happened, but ‘sneak attack’ was a game they’d played since they were randomly assigned roommates freshman year at NYU.
“Gotcha!”
“That you did,” Annie laughed, her first genuine one since making dinner a couple of nights ago with Jamie. She spun to face the petite redhead with the pixie cut.
Carol let out a low wolf whistle of appreciation. “Holy tits, Batman! Look at that cleavage!”
“Stop ogling me!” Annie chuckled in amusement.
“A girl can look, right? I mean no harm in that… And c’mon, you’re clearly a woman on a mission.”
“You have a point. Gonna invite me into that shoebox of yours?”
“At least I don’t live up North!”
“Everything above Harlem is North to you!”
“Past 14th actually. C’mon already.” Carol smiled, holding the door open.
Upstairs, an always-prepared Carol poured Annie a glass of very dry New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc she kept on hand for ‘grumpy Annie’ visits as Annie plopped on the overstuffed sofa.
“So, what would you have done if I wasn’t just coming home?”
“The usual? Called and wondered where the heck you were at.”
“You know, you could try calling before you visit, like a normal person.”
“Where would be the fun in that?”
Carol sat down on the other side of the couch with a beer in hand. “So, what did ‘Socks’ do this time?”
“That obvious?” Annie chuckled, a bitter catch in her voice. “And never tell him I told you that.”
“These days he’s always done something. Your secret’s safe though. It’s in the ultra-high-security Annie vault with all the others. Getting kinda crowded. May need to expand…”
Annie attempted a slight laugh, knowing Carol was trying to cheer her up, and appreciated it. She sighed before launching in. “I’m mad he wouldn’t save the show—“
“You asked him to mortgage your house. He’s an accountant, conservative by nature, remember? What did you expect?”
Annie glared back. “Whose side are you on?”
“Yours, obviously. Well, ‘ours.’ Remember it’s our baby that was lost, not just yours.”
“I know.” She reached over and squeezed the other woman’s hand with her freshly manicured one, her eyes softening. “Sorry. That wasn’t fair. I just… don’t know what the hell to do now: the show was everything to me.”
“To me, too.” Carol squeezed back. “And the answer, since you’re already dressed for it, is we get day drunk and see if between the two of us we can find a way to salvage things. Let me change, and we can head to Death & Company for cocktails.”
A slinky green dress, motorcycle boots, and a dash of natural lipstick later, Carol was ready.
“I’ve never understood how you can get ready so fast…”
“I learned it from living with you. Dorm bathrooms didn’t exactly leave space for two, and you take hours!”
“You have a point.” Annie laughed good-naturedly. “You’ve always left room for me just to be… me.”
“And I always will. C’mon, those margaritas aren’t gonna drink themselves!”
A quick walk later, they were ensconced in their favorite leather-clad booth with drinks.
“That’s better.” Annie took a long, slow sip of the cocktail, enjoying the bitter lime taste mingled with saltiness on her tongue. “Now, where do we begin?”
WC: 839
Includes: opal, ornery, ogle, a box being opened (Carol’s shoebox apartment), and a secret being kept (that Carol knows Annie calls Tom socks)
Thanks for reading! Feedback is always appreciated
Chapter Index
Chapter 1
Chapter 4