On This Street [an unofficial challenge]

Hello everyone! Welcome back to another unofficial challenge!

A couple of notes...

One -- Elephant in the room, I have been away for a while. After a semi-needed hiatus, I am hoping that I will appear on Vocal more consistently from now on. Lots of love to everyone here. 💕

Two -- My pillar post is not accepting edits at the moment, so it's not updated... I did run into this problem before, and ended up needing to create a second post (hence the 2.0 in the title). I'm hoping that soon it'll clear up and I can edit it again!

Now, for the challenge...

The Prompt

Write a short story that begins on the street selected for you by randomstreetview.com!

Randomstreetview.com

So what is randomstreetview.com? It is a website that takes you to a random street anywhere in the world and displays the satellite image -- like a Google Earth on shuffle.

So, what do you do? Put "randomstreetview.com" in your search bar, and as soon as it opens, it will display a random street. Use your mouse to find the POV angle you like best. Then, take a screenshot of it and use that image as the cover photo for your entry!

Tip: If you click on the dash on the map menu at the top left corner, it will hide it for you so the menu/buttons are not in the photo when you screenshot!

Another tip: You can also click the "Next" button if you have zero inspiration from the first photo. It will take you to another random street somewhere in the world!

If you have any questions about how to use the wesbite, please comment below!

Some notes

There is no specific genre for this story. The only real requirement is that your story must start on the street provided for you by randomstreetview.com.

Other Criteria

Word Count: There is no word count limit on this! Both short stories and flash fiction are permitted; however, I would ask that you aim to get past the 250 word mark, but less than 1,000.

Link back: If possible, embed a link at the end of your entry to this page so others can enter if they feel inspired to!

Comment: Come back and comment the link to your entry once it has been published! Otherwise I won't see it D:

The entries will be acknowledged with a reply and inserted into a list at the bottom of this post. Come back in a few days after you've entered and make sure I added you in!

FAQ

Can I make more than one submission? Because this prompt is so versatile, yes! Just keep in mind that only one submission per creator can be featured in the Top 3!

Can I submit a story that I have already written? For this prompt, I don't imagine that you would have created a suitable entry, but the answer is no.

Important Dates

Deadline: This challenge will close on Sunday, November 9th, 2025, at 11:59pm MST. I usually make it either the 15th or the last day of the month, but this will work better with my schedule. This gives you 6 weeks to create your entries!

Results: The results will be posted on Sunday, November 16th, 2025.

The results post will include the Top 3 entries (1st, 2nd, and 3rd place) as well as little blurbs rationalizing my choices. There will be links to all submissions included at the end.

Prizes? Currently, my prizes are community-based rather than monetary. The prize goes to the 1st place winner only, in which I will read, like, and comment on FIVE of your posts that I have not yet read, as well as subscribe if I have not already.

If you have any questions, please comment below! I can't wait to see what you come up with! Happy writing everyone!

♡ Belle ♡

The Entries

All entries will be linked here in the order in which they were submitted.

1. "Rocky Mountain Way" by Mike Singleton 💜 Mikeydred
2. "A Letter to the One" by Diane Foster
3. "The Journey Home" by Tanya Lei
4. "Transmission" by Kendall Defoe
5. "It's Beautiful Here" by Dana Crandell