A Knock at the Door

The Prompt

This Challenge is about the moment that breaks the stillness. A quiet night, an unexpected sound or maybe a knock at the door that shouldn’t be there.

It could be someone your character knows, fears or never imagined. The knock is only the beginning. What matters is what follows. Start there and let the story unfold with each step toward the door.

Write like something strange has just arrived.

In order for your submission to qualify, it must be:

• A fiction story.
• Between 600 and 3,000 words.
• Submitted to the Fiction community. Your story will be disqualified if it is submitted to any other community.
• Submitted before October 8, 2025 at 11:59 PM EST.
• Your work must be original and unpublished.

The Prizes

• 5 Winners: $200 each
• 15 Runners-up: $15 each
• 10 Honorable Mentions: $5 each

For your story to be eligible, it must be between 600 and 3,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

Stories published on Vocal and entered into the Challenge up until October 8, 2025 at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.

The A Knock at the Door Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+, visit https://everydaydealxhub.live/vocal-plus%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E.%3C/p%3E%3Cp class="css-1923z11-Text">To be eligible to win, you must be over the age of 13 and reside in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need a Stripe account created and connected to receive prizes. Entrants located outside of these countries will not be eligible to win.