Over 500 stories were submitted to the 2014 Hint Fiction Contest. From that 500 a top 20 was chosen. From that top 20, 483 votes were cast. Finally, a top 10 was declared. However, as the creator of Hint Fiction, Robert felt at least two stories deserved a shot as finalists, so 12 stories were sent to Benjamin Percy. And, interestingly enough, the two stories Robert included ended up in the top five.
First Place:
AT THE SEASHORE by Monica Wang
After the accident that summer, he stopped listening to seashells. The ocean was bad enough—what it told him to do was worse.
Second Place:
OUTSIDE THE FIVE-DOLLAR SHOWERS AT HOOTER BROWN’S TRUCKSTOP by Teague Bohlen
“Got a sleeper cab?”
I nodded.
“Good enough.” She kissed me. She tasted like Old Style, asphalt, and menthols. Not you, but yes, good enough.
Third Place:
RED ALERT by Kevin Curow
Forgot my mask on the subway. Recess was in the bunker, anyway. Momma packed mushrooms again. Gramps says the birds we read about could sing.
Honorable Mentions:
BYGONES by Lisa Rubenson
He swirled his cocktail and walked in circles on a pile of my mother’s clothes. Every few steps, we’d hear the crunch of plastic hangers.
NO MORE by Frank Ladd
Steady snow erased her trail to the lake’s precipice. Broken ice would scab by morning, and what would the old biddies in town say then?