Challenge

Paul and John's 47-Words Short Story Unofficial Challenge. Top Story - March 2026.
UPDATE - Republished to update the list of entries, with the 40 we've had so far. Completely smashed last unofficial challenge which recieved 31 entries. And there is still time. If you have yet to enter and fancy winning a bit of money or just challenging yourself or both or just making two old geezers job harder - please enter!
By Paul Stewartabout 20 hours ago in Writers
Why Do We Remember Old Memories More?
Introduction Have you ever noticed how certain moments from your past feel more vivid than events that happened just yesterday? A childhood smell, an old song, or a familiar place can suddenly bring back a flood of memories. This common human experience raises an interesting question: why do we tend to remember older memories more strongly than recent ones?
By Ska day ago in Writers
The Writers Hail Mary
"Hail Mary" is often used in everyday language to describe any last-minute attempt to solve a problem or achieve a goal, especially when the chances seem slim.
By S. A. Crawforda day ago in Writers
The Overlapping Shadows
My Manager’s Contact Name is "Boss"—I Secretly Saved It for Three Years My name is Lin Wan. I’m twenty-six and work as a copywriter at a mid-sized advertising agency.
By Water&Well&Pagea day ago in Writers
Why Unwritten Thoughts Are Lost Forever
There is a specific kind of loss that most people recognize only in hindsight: the realization that something once understood clearly has vanished without leaving a trace. It is not the loss of a fact, but the loss of a connection, a realization, or a way of seeing that once felt complete and meaningful. The mind remembers that something mattered, but cannot recover what it was. No record exists to return to. No artifact remains. The understanding did not fail. It simply disappeared.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcasta day ago in Writers
It’s Not Fair!!!
We all see the posts and comments about challenges being unfair, questioning the process, decrying it as unfair, personally motivated, and umptyzillion conspiracy theories about creators as judges.
By Harper Lewis2 days ago in Writers
Scaling Outdoor Spaces: How Custom 10x10 Pop Up Tents Are Used in Columbus, Ohio, USA
Custom 10x10 pop up tents are a type of outdoor shelter that combine a lightweight design with adjustable coverage. These tents are often seen at markets, outdoor activities, community gatherings, and other temporary outdoor settings. In a city like Columbus, Ohio, USA, where outdoor space and weather can influence event planning, these tents provide a simple way to create covered areas for a variety of purposes.
By Sonia Rai2 days ago in Writers
Unofficial Challenge Winners: What would you do if you were rich?
In February, my daydreaming inspired me to open an unofficial challenge asking folks in the Vocal community what they would do if they were rich.
By Kay Husnick3 days ago in Writers
AI Can Clarify Thought Instead of Replacing It
The Accusation Is About Origin, Not Appearance The accusation that using AI makes writing deceptive sounds strong because it targets authorship, not style. It implies that if a tool is involved at any stage, the final product is no longer truly yours. That assumption only holds if the tool is the source of the thinking. If the reasoning, direction, and conclusions originate elsewhere, then the presence of a tool does not transfer ownership. It only affects how the ideas are presented.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast4 days ago in Writers
Breaking Up Is Hard To Do: a Harper Lewis rogue challenge
This is my second post about this challenge, which is to write a letter breaking up with a literary character. You may take the point of view of another character, real or of your own creation; there’s no wrong way to do this. You may choose anything from a nursery rhyme to a poem to a play to an opera to a short story—you get the picture: any genre.
By Harper Lewis4 days ago in Writers
Ipso Facto
Hear the hurt before you see the hope. I learned the narrow length of every rope. The clock is moving toward the middle mark.
By James L. Royer4 days ago in Writers
Preservation as an Act of Care
Care is usually associated with people, not with ideas. It brings to mind attentiveness, patience, protection, and responsibility toward something fragile. Meaning rarely enters that picture. Thoughts are assumed to be abundant, replaceable, and endlessly renewable. If one is lost, another will come. This assumption feels practical, but it is wrong in a quiet and costly way. Some meanings are not interchangeable. Some insights arrive only once, shaped by a particular moment, a particular season, or a particular convergence of experience that will never repeat in the same form.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast5 days ago in Writers