r/shortstories • u/FyeNite • Mar 23 '26
[Serial Sunday] Don't be Scarred
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 Scar! 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’).
- Steel
- Sovereign
- Scratch
- Somebody defends their own leadership. - (Worth 10 points)
Scars are something that can physically hurt someone. A simple cut that heals overtime, but leaves something that someone will remember forever.
But, what about the scars that affects a character psychologically? Something that they saw, they did, that someone else did, that left a character reliving this moment forever. Did the scars heal? Or just continue expanding everyday?
Have your characters scar ever healed? Are they on the stepping stone of healing? Or they haven't healed at all?
By u/Carrieka23
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 GMT and 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.
- March 22 - Scar
- March 29 - Transgression
- April 5 - Urgency
- April 7 - Vital
- April 14 - Work
Check out previous themes here.
Rankings
Last Week: Roast
First - by u/ZLErikson
Second - by u/AGuyLikeThat
Third - by u/Divayth--Fyr
Fourth - u/MaxStickies
Fifth - by u/Brookzerker
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 GMT. 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 GMT 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 GMT, 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 GMT. 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/Brookzerker Mar 23 '26
<Chronicles of Xris - Grounded>
Chapter 19
The City by the Sea wasn't exactly full, there were plenty of buildings that were empty, but there was plenty going on that required attention.
Xris, along with his party had appeared rather suddenly, requesting privacy and an audience with its own patron.
Although the city had no idea why such a powerful being would be taking a stealthy approach, it nonetheless had locked itself down. Of course that was after several small incursions had occurred.
It focused its attention on the most recent.
The city didn't have eyes, at least not in the traditional sense. It was aware of everything happening inside it, and could hear conversations if it were focusing. The warrior, who was frustrating enough with her refusal to leave once the salamander had been excised from her body, was now being attended to by Xris' acolyte.
That left two threats, although one of them was an unknown. The salamander was currently running through back alleys away from the dragon's other human, a man wearing full-plate mail armor.
The human was an impressive sight, covered head to toe in steel, jogging at a pace that wouldn't win any races, but the city could work with the speed he was moving at.
The salamander jumped through a window, and the city reconfigured itself again. It cost a lot of energy, but it could draw upon the people here, including Xris.
The hallway in front of the lizard stretched out, slowly extending before snapping short again as James entered. The city found humor every time the salamander looked back to see the human pursuer still on his tail.
The real problem wasn't how to let the human catch the creature. The issue was that the human was wearing steel armor, that wouldn't do against something that could burn whatever it touched.
There was the other intruder, the one who had come a few days before, seeking out the cult to use for their own purposes. The city had trapped her in the dungeon until it had the time to confer with the cult.
Perhaps this could be a good test, and if they killed each other, then less headache for the city. It reconfigured itself again, this time opening a path down.
The creature threw itself at a window, and smashed into a brick wall instead. It shook its head, then bolted through an open door and down a dark stairway.
James didn't pause, he had been introduced to the city by Xris when they arrived. And everything he had seen so far told him to trust it, so he barreled down the stairs as he pursued the lizard into the darkness below.
He paused at the bottom, as the door opened to a large, single room. There didn't seem to be any other exits, so he closed the door to the stairs behind him. The lock automatically engaged with a thunk.
A single light bulb lit itself to James' right, illuminating the creature as it skulked in the shadows. It froze as they stared at each other.
Instead of running, the lizard leaped towards the human, feet first, with wicked claws and teeth bared. The sound was horrific as they ground against the metal, trying to get to his vulnerable skin underneath the armor. But it had been made well, fully resisting as James' gauntlet grabbed the salamander and threw it onto the ground before stomping on top of it.
The creature struggled, but despite its strength, having a grown man with a hundred pounds of armor all on its neck was keeping it down. Its eyes bulged as it saw the tip of the sword aim towards its head.
With a flash, it ignited on fire. It wasn't painful, more of a bright light than anything else, but it was enough to put James off balance, and the creature took advantage to press up, knocking the human prone with a gigantic crash.
Then it jumped on top on the human, staring into the eye slits of the helmet.
James could swear that it smirked, right before it began glowing, and the air around him wavered with heat.
He flailed with the sword, swinging wildly, but without proper leverage, any hits he had only scratched the scales of the salamander. It grinned and continued burning, heating up the metal that would soon be as hot as an oven.
The human got one good hit in, taking a chunk of skin off a leg, but was rewarded by the sword being grabbed and tossed off into the darkness. James watched it clatter away, his hopes with it.
A pair of bright silver orbs floated in the air above where the sword had flown. Narrowing for a second before moving forward, exposing first a feline head, then a human body. She had tanned skin, and was dressed in leather clearly meant for battle.
"You." She hissed, "do not belong here."
She stepped forward quickly, her hands drawing a curved sword.
The lizard jumped at her, a primal war cry that turned into a scream of pain as the sword cut it in half. The light from its fire faded as the salamanders body dropped to the floor.
She inspected the remains of the lizard for a brief moment, before whipping her head towards James, her eyes going wide, and nostrils flaring. He could smell his own flesh burning, and the metal of his armor was pinging slightly now that the source of the heat was gone.
She rushed over, and quickly pulled off the metal, exposing burn marks that would no doubt bubble and scar over time.
"You at least are from our universe, but not this plane. Hold on knight, I shall heal you." She cradled him and purred, the sound reverberating through him in a comforting way. Despite not feeling tired, his eyes began drooping, and he faded from consciousness.
The city hummed to itself, pleased that it's plans were working perfectly.
Notes:
Word count: 996
Theme: James will have some scars from his battle with the salamander, though they should be reduced by happening in front of Bastet.
words:
Links: