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Current writing prompt / October 2026
Everything decays eventually. This month, we want you to explore Rot -not just as the decomposition of flesh, but as the slow corruption of people, places, memories, relationships, beliefs, and things that were once beautiful. What happens when something refuses to stay buried? What if the rot isn't beneath the surface, but inside it?
This month's challenge
Write a horror story inspired by the idea of rot. It could be physical, psychological, supernatural, emotional, or something entirely unexpected. A house slowly mouldering from within. A body that refuses to decompose. A relationship turning toxic. A beloved memory becoming rotten. A town where everything seems to be decaying. Take the theme wherever your imagination leads you - but make us smell the decay.
Closes 31 October 2026 at 11:59 pm IST
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From across the Circle
Prompt submissions, freeflow fiction, and confessions, marked clearly so you know what waits behind each cover.
June 2026
A summer in a secluded mountain town brings Naomi face to face with forgotten traditions, lingering folklore, and a connection that feels both comforting and unsettling.
July 2026
In a remote village surrounded by a strange, salt-filled lake, a patrolman discovers hundreds of human-shaped figures preserved beneath the water’s surface. When the figures awaken and march toward the village, the residents are forced to confront a curse born from a mother’s grief after her newborn daughter was deliberately left to drown. As the lake drains and the villagers begin turning to salt, the horrifying truth emerges: the curse will consume everyone except the seven infants who have never tasted salt.
August 2026
છેલ્લું પાટિયું' એક ડાર્ક હોરર-થ્રિલર વાર્તા છે, જે એક ગુપ્ત સંપ્રદાય અને સદીઓ જૂની વિધિના રહસ્ય પર આધારિત છે. સચિન નામનો એક પત્રકાર એક તોફાની રાત્રે એક રહસ્યમય ગામમાં પહોંચે છે જ્યાં તેને એક એવી ભયાનક પરંપરા વિશે જાણવા મળે છે. જેમાં લોકો મૃત્યુ પામતા નથી પરંતુ દુનિયાની યાદોમાંથી જ ભૂંસાઈ જાય છે. ગામના સદીઓ જૂના આ રહસ્યની તપાસ કરતાં સચિનને સમજાય છે કે તે માત્ર આ રહસ્યને શોધવા નથી આવ્યો પરંતુ કદાચ હવે આ રહસ્યનો આગળનો ભાગ પોતે જ બની ગયો છે. ભૂલી ગયેલા જીવન, પ્રતિબંધિત નામો અને સદીઓથી ચાલતી એક ભયાનક વિધિની આ વાર્તા છે.