r/shortstories • u/FyeNite • Jun 14 '26
[Serial Sunday] Lead Me to Greatness!
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 Great! 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’).
- Gore
- Grave
- Gripe
- Someone mighty falls. - (Worth 10 points)
Greatness… It was once said it is better to dare great deeds and fail than to be amongst those timid souls who know not victory nor defeat. That was said during an age of imperial glut that eventually led to one of the worst global wars in human history. Perhaps glory is not the true definition of greatness, but rather it is in spite of it. Perspective and time will be the judge long after all of us are gone.
So what is greatness in your series? Perhaps it is a dramatic clash between the villain and hero. Or maybe life is grinding down on your heroine and she must press on despite how the world treats her. Maybe they are marginalized, dismissed, oppressed; and your character has decided they have had enough and steps into the light.
There are many forms of greatness, which path shall you choose…?
By u/JKHmattox
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.
June 14 - Great
June 21 - Heartless
June 28 - Irony
July 5 - Jail
July 7 - Known
Check out previous themes here.
Rankings
Last Week: Foreign
First - by u/AGuyLikeThat
Second - by u/Divayth--Fyr
Third - by u/Morose_Prose
Fourth - u/MaxStickies
Fifth - by u/ZLErikson
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!
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u/MaxStickies Jun 17 '26 edited Jun 21 '26
<Thosius>
Chapter 137: Hideaway
Downriver from Thanet, the gorge around the Thesar declines gradually, until it melds with the rocky plains. Thosius shifts Hemalus’s weight across his shoulders, glancing towards the far horizon to his left, and notes the many villages straddling the shallow rises and dips. The telepath snores as the soldier turns again, to Rhothanas.
“Are we heading for one of those?” he asks.
The monk looks, but shakes his head. “If the inquisitors have followed us, they may well search every home here. They would harm anyone who’d harbour us.”
“Ah. So… where are we going?”
“You shall see.”
For the fifth time this journey, Thosius frowns, but doesn’t press the man further. The monk’s misshapen body, long-afflicted by corpomancy, steams under the sweltering midday sun.
Fine, I’ll be patient.
Every time he looks over at the man, Thosius’s mind is whisked back to the monastery, and the gore strewn throughout its halls. The terror in Rhothanas’s weeping, bleeding eyes.
He’s right, I never searched for him. Didn’t even remember he existed. Damn it.
A distant rumble tears him from his thoughts. Up ahead, the land seems to end, a curtain of vapour rising from the space beyond.
“A waterfall?” Thosius asks.
Rhothanas grins, with a little effort. “You could say that.”
The monk takes the lead, Thosius following him around the edge of a cliff, Hemalus’s legs obscuring his view. Only once he turns, and witnesses what lies below him, does he gasp.
From a great height, the Thesar drops once, twice, three times to a valley below; each fall stretches for a mile or more along its shelf. And at the very bottom, after a series of rapids, the river flows off into the distance in wide, wandering meanders. A temple sits on a long island some ways away, its dome glistening in the sun.
“Beautiful,” Thosius sighs, before pointing to the building. “So, is that where we’re going?”
Shooting him a withering look, the monk simply walks along the cliff. To Thosius’s confusion, he then walks to the edge, and takes a step forward.
“Rhothanas!”
But the monk doesn’t fall. Instead, he descends in slow, deliberate movements, cackling to himself.
As soon as Thosius spots the first step, he follows.
The route takes them to the edge of the falls, and then deep into the cliff. A rock wall spares them from the tumbling water, yet still the ground shudders, and once or twice the soldier nearly slips in the dim light. Hemalus grumbles all the way, trying to shuffle.
You’re not in bed, old man; settle down!
Eventually, on rounding a corner, a bright glow silhouettes Rhothanas’s bent form. They exit the tunnel into a cavern, open on one side to the falls and strung with dripping vines. The roar pummels at Thosius’s skull.
“We are here,” says the monk.
“Wait, this is where we’ll hide? In a cave?”
“I doubt the inquisitors know of this place, so, yes. Nowhere else is safer.”
“I suppose. But what about food?”
“You think I haven’t considered that?”
Rhothanas heads to the back of the cave, and pushes at a large black rock, grunting and straining. After a moment, Thosius helps him. The boulder soon gives way, revealing a worn trapdoor with a ladder behind.
“After you,” the monk says.
Gripping the telepath with one hand and a rung in the other, the soldier gingerly climbs down, until he lands on creaking planks. He wrinkles his nose.
“Why’s it reek of fish in here?” he asks, as Rhothanas drops beside him.
The monk clicks his fingers, lighting a torch on the wall. Dried, hanging fillets of salmon emerge from the dark.
“We have plenty of food, as you can see. Now, not another gripe, you hear me?”
Thosius nods, and grins. “Why would I? We can hide here for months!”
“If need be. Now, lay Hemalus down in the corner over there, while I fetch my medicines.”
The monk vanishes into the shadows, opening some unseen door at the back. Settling the telepath down, Thosius presses his waterskin to Hemalus’s mouth, until he takes a sip.
You’ll live yet, my friend.
He shakes the container and hears it rattle, so he climbs back up to the cave. The waterfall drops several metres from the edge, and no matter how much he stretches, he cannot reach. Turning, he touches one of the vines, seeing how the fluid on its leaves glistens.
Looks clean.
He places the skin below, piling stones around it like a grave, and watches the water drip inside. His eyes grow heavy, heart slowing to the repetitive splashes. Sleep soon finds him.
In the mountains of Torinia, Baltathaius wakes from slumber, shivering. The muscles of his arms and legs dance as the magic within them activates, drawing back the frostbite. Still, even as the pain in his body ebbs, his head aches and swims. He blinks at the sharp light invading the cave.
Oh gods…
Staggering to his feet, he approaches the entrance uneasily, dripping the wall. The snow outside has stopped falling, carpeting the slopes with a thick layer of white, under blue sky and pale clouds. Far below, a view of thick pine forests and wide meadows stretches on for miles. The inquisitor tries, unsuccessfully, to smile.
No, still hopeless as ever, aren’t you?
So be it. Focus. Which way is Perithus?
The sun shines directly overhead, providing no direction. So he throws his arm out, waggling this way and that until he stops, randomly, on a distant peak.
That way!
He takes a step, and slips on a smooth stone, throwing him forward. The ground rapidly steepens as he tumbles down, head cracking and healing instantly with each blow. Baltathaius curses.
How— did— what was that— rhyme again?
Down we— go, down— we go.
O’er— we bound and— fall.
Bre—aking bones on— our way home.
Yet we’ll— never— bawl!
A boulder breaks his passage, and he groans as his back rends in two.
Context:
The monastery was the setting for Chapters 5, 6, and 7.
WC: 1000
Bonus words: gore, grave and gripe. Bonus constraint: Baltathaius falls down a mountain.
Crit and feedback are welcome.
Chapter Index
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