Menu

Prompts

Contests

Stories

Blog

Menu

✕

CONNECT

Editing Design Marketing Publicity Ghostwriting Websites

BLOG

Success Stories

APPS

TOOLS

Book Promotion Sites Book Review Blogs Booktube Channel Guide Book Title Generator Character Name Generator Independent Publishers Literary Agents Literary Magazines Pen Name Generator Plot Generator Publishers Directory Short Story Ideas Writing Contests Writing Exercises Writing Scholarships

ABOUT

About Reedsy Terms Privacy

CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#88: Fairy Tale Truths

Did you know that April 2nd marks Hans Christian Andersen’s 216th birthday? Andersen’s work has been adapted and reimagined so many times it's become part of our literary DNA. In fact, it's hard to imagine the world of fairy tales without them. And while some were based on old folklore, many sprang from his own imagination — sometimes even incorporating details of his life and using the genre's fantastical trappings to write parables about his experiences.

This week we invite you to use your stories to explore larger truths. Whether you set them in a magical fairy tale realm or not, stories are a wonderful way to examine important ideas. So sit back, reflect, and prepare to let your imagination run wild through the forest.

This week's prompts

Write a cautionary fable about someone who always lies.

Adults – 116 stories

Write a story about an ordinary person speaking truth to power.

Adults – 68 stories

Write about a prince or princess who is asked to give up something valuable as part of a deal to escape the world they come from.

Fantasy – 190 stories

Write a fairy tale about an outsider trying to fit in.

Kids – 173 stories

Write about an author famous for their fairy tale retellings.

Teens – 73 stories

Stories

“Stand Out Fit In” by Vivian Huang

Submitted to Contest #88

Maggie was a small girl when her parents gave birth to another child, this time a boy. She had screamed in their very tired and exhausted faces, upset that they felt the need to replace her because they probably thought she wasn’t fun enough for them. They sent her upstairs, too tired to argue with her but to Maggie, it looked like they wanted to kick her out. She threw several fits the next week, ignoring the desperate parents and their persuading explanations. Despite her tantrums, she found herself adoring the little boy that would so...

Read story

“"A Tear of a Hopeful Fairy"” by Hanley Gant

Submitted to Contest #88

"HHMMMMPPHH…–!!!" To stroll around the market in peace is just a usual thing for Rhian to do. But this time was an unusual experience for her, though, as she was grabbed suddenly by a man she didn't know. Her mouth was cupped by his soft palm, making her heart almost leaped its way out of her chest. The man quickly brought her to an isolated place, and so her eyes widened in shock when the man suddenly summoned a portal. Her anxious thoughts implanted fear in the blood running through her veins. She knows this will lead her into a situati...

Read story

“Journey of Little Angel” by S Afrose

Submitted to Contest #88

It's such a fairytale - a little angel comes to earth from heaven; to know the life of human beings. Ah! what a pathetic verse all around. She can't hold the golden tears and uses the magic stick with spiritual power. In a moment, an eternal shower is starting. Petals of flowers fall from sky. The color of sky turns to rainbow love. Nature opens it's angelic hub. Fragrances of crimson flowers are touching all hearts. Not a single drop of pain is sustained. Little angel feels such a happiness state that beyond her imagination. Butterfly ris...

Read story

“The lonely Meerkat with the top hat” by Hayley Carter

Submitted to Contest #88

One morning, when the sun was barely over the hills, that lined the Kalahari Desert, a Meerkat was scampering away from his hole in the ground looking for grubs. He has been stuck there for quite a while. You see Mr. Meerkat, who was the smallest and thinnest of his siblings was banished, left behind by his family. He has been stuck there ever since. Mr. Meerkat always wore the best of clothes though as he always decided he wanted to look his best. He wore a rather large top hat with a ribbon adorned to it and a magician’s coat that made him...

Read story

“Out of the Bag” by Gia Volterra De Saulnier

Submitted to Contest #88

Under the deep sand in the Galapagos Islands, there were 123 tiny tortoise eggs that were stolen. One by one, the tiny tortoises were each put in a baggie and then in a stiff, leather suitcase, with barely there lining. "Where are we going?" Charlotte asked as she peeked her head out of her shell. "I don't know, but I don't like it, not one bit!" Dom complained. "I liked it there in the sand, it was nice and comfy." Mona was a little perturbed but she tried her best not to show it too much. “What happened? Where are we?” Tony wanted to...

Read story

“The Blue Jay's Final Song” by Ellasyn Carpenter

Submitted to Contest #88

This place is...lonely. I might be surrounded by bustling crowds and honking cars but it's nothing like home. At home you don't get constantly yelled at. At home I can be myself. At home I don't have to worry about being found out. My mission is simple get in, get it, get out. I wish I never accepted it though, I hate the human world. Everyone seems so...sad. I walk through a place called Averndan. I walk through the crowds of people who all seem to forget they are alive. Like they are all running from something they push past me without say...

Read story

“Jonas” by Remi Ridha

Submitted to Contest #88

Jonas Jonas sat at a table at the extreme corner of the canteen all alone while his colleagues could be seen sitting together at tables that were closer to the counter and door of the canteen. A canteen that was located on the second floor of the five floor building that hosted the governmental department of forestry and wildlife. Jonas despite been just 30 years old was already high ranked official in the forestry department. This implied that most of the other employees that were present at the canteen were his subordinates though one coul...

Read story

“Monkey” by Mike Garrigan

Submitted to Contest #88

Once upon a time, a monkey named Rory lived in a jungle. Rory’s jungle was particularly dark and especially terrible—full of flesh eating fish, savage spiders, and cunning crocodiles.Rory resided with a troop of gargantuan silver back gorillas. The troop adopted Rory after a bask of crocodiles ate his tribe. (By the way, a “bask” is a group of land crocodiles, while a “float” is a group of water crocodiles.) Carl, the alpha gorilla, protected Rory from the evils of the wicked jungle, but not without remuneration. In exchage for Carl’s protec...

Read story

“Blackburn” by Gautam Prakash

Submitted to Contest #88

Once upon a time in a land far away lived a young soldier named Magnus. He belonged to the Kingdom of Blackburn. Magnus although born into a family who serves the King as slaves, he rose in the community ranks through his inhumane strength, caring attitude and selflessness. Magnus was not only a powerful soldier, he also was the commander for the evil King Mathias who ruled the kingdom. Mathias, unlike Magnus, has a desire for conquering lands and destroying the land beyond recognition. With Magnus by his side, the sky was the limit for King...

Read story

“A Guinea Tale” by Laura Endeacott

Submitted to Contest #88

You could say he was an outsider, because he was all the wrong shape. The same shape, but different none-the-less. For starters, he was bigger than all the others, he ate more than them, was expected to live longer than them and had a wild sleeping pattern - making it difficult to meet the demands of their nocturnal raids every second evening. He would not give up even though he was still a lowly squire awaiting his induction into knighthood, because of his guinea pig upbringing. He was brought up by his furry guinea pig parents, only for th...

Read story

“A Dame of Glory” by Jack Anderson

Submitted to Contest #88

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. Her silky hair was always braided with ribbons of all sorts of colors. The entire kingdom looked at her for advice, she was a beacon of hope, she was inspirational and loved by all. And lucky enough to be right by her side was her personal knight, Sir Dante. Sir Dante was personally hired by the king to wait on and to protect his daughter. Sir Dante talked only to her. He rarely slept or ate, then when he did do so, he did it in private. The Princess had seen his face only when they ...

Read story

“Dreamland” by Alasdair Strachan

Submitted to Contest #88

I awaken to the sounds of pan flutes and it fills me with dread. I'm still dreaming and as I open my eyes to take in the fizzy purple sky, I let out a heavy sigh. It dawns on me that I am in Dreamland. A unique type of lucid dream, with a fantasy, video game-like backdrop. like it was designed by an eight-year-old girl, filled with cartoonish characters and epic quests. Something that is best to be ignored according to my therapist who, I suspect, thinks I'm lying. When I first appeared here in dreamland, as I call it...

Read story

“Sympathies For The Little Devil” by Steven Nguyen

Submitted to Contest #88

No one really knew what would be a good and quite seemingly random number to remember, except the old Devil, and that number was seventy million and forty one. As the Creators of the Underworld created the finality visions of all the realms - the big picture, if you would - the Devil contemplated all things precision, so he worked for Hell Office. He was in the detail after all; no other creatures but him put that out there. Millenia passed and he’d still got it. Filing tons of paperwork in no time flat. All marketing schemes, the plans, the...

Read story

“Cruel World” by E. Sharma

Submitted to Contest #88

It was a cruel world. Those who dwelled in the dark fought for the top, the harsh ways of their world were simply a struggle for power. Lust and greed tainted the air, blackening their side of the wall. Only those who fought their way to the monarchy could have a taste of the other side. Everyone desired, longed, and lusted; except him. Harlem resided in the shadows, so dark even the other nocturnal spirits could zero in on him. It was the perfect space for him, he could hide away without a fight. A way for him to ward off even the bri...

Read story

“Christian and Walter” by Raphael Howard

Submitted to Contest #88

Once upon a time (well, in the middle of the 19th century) there was a storyteller called Christian. Every week, he would go into the town centre and tell his latest tales. Audience members would applaud and pay him with plenty of gold and silver coins, but the main thing Christian loved was being able to share his stories with the public. Tales of toy soldiers and jumping fleas, talking candles and lonely giants. Some ended happily, many ended sadly, but most were somewhere in the middle. Christian especially enjoyed stories where his...

Read story

Load more stories

$50

Prize money

622

Contest entries

0

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Apr 09, 2021 EST

Won by Shannon Ethel 🏆

Title: No More Happy Endings

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

Explore more writing prompt ideas:

Adults Writing Prompts ⭢

Adventure Writing Prompts ⭢

Angst Writing Prompts ⭢

Character Writing Prompts ⭢

Christmas Writing Prompts ⭢

Dark Writing Prompts ⭢

Dialogue Writing Prompts ⭢

Dramatic Writing Prompts ⭢

Dystopian Writing Prompts ⭢

Fall Writing Prompts ⭢

Fantasy Writing Prompts ⭢

Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Fluff Writing Prompts ⭢

Funny Writing Prompts ⭢

Halloween Writing Prompts ⭢

High School Writing Prompts ⭢

Historical Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Holiday Writing Prompts ⭢

Horror Writing Prompts ⭢

Kids Writing Prompts ⭢

Middle School Writing Prompts ⭢

Mystery Writing Prompts ⭢

Narrative Writing Prompts ⭢

Nonfiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Novel Writing Prompts ⭢

Poetry Writing Prompts ⭢

Romance Writing Prompts ⭢

Sad Writing Prompts ⭢

Science Fiction Writing Prompts ⭢

Short Story Writing Prompts ⭢

Spring Writing Prompts ⭢

Summer Writing Prompts ⭢

Teens Writing Prompts ⭢

Thanksgiving Writing Prompts ⭢

Thriller and Suspense Writing Prompts ⭢

Valentine's Day Writing Prompts ⭢

Vampire Writing Prompts ⭢

Winter Writing Prompts ⭢