Write a story about a fox spirit (a gumiho, jiǔwěihú, kitsune, or hồ ly tinh), inspired by, e.g. Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese folklore.

Posted in Fiction on Mar 10, 2023

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✍️ 41 stories

“Decomposition Sits with You” by Fabi M

🏆 Winner of Contest #189

Hugo told me once that fall was his favorite time of the year. Told me to hold leaves as delicate as you would a pretty girl’s hand. His teeth would then spread wide across his face. Pallid and flaked with brown. Rows of sweet tooth that hadn’t been cleared of duff. On his days off we’d go hunting for mushrooms in the forest behind our house. “It’s hard to tell which mushrooms are edible,” Hugo would say. Always said, giddy over the possibility of the inedible as he led me through the forest. My studies turned to what you can eat. It...

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“狐と笛 - The Fox and the Flute” by Russell Mickler

Submitted to Contest #189

The Fisherman. A Forest Path. Promises. Cherry Blossoms. It was nearing the end of the day, and Henjō lifted his trap from the lowland river. He frowned at his luck as he reeled in his nets and lines from the water. Recovering only two eels and a catfish, Henjō would go hungry today, for his catch would only feed his wife and child. His stomach growled in disappointment. A young man, Henjō wore a green kosode over his hakama trousers, and a round straw hat shielded his face from the sun. Two nearly-empty wicker baskets hung from a sturdy pin...

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“Whiskers in the Wind” by Sav Lightwood

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #189

It had been three days since Ojisan passed. Legs curled, proper and quiet against the shuttered rooftops. Sora couldn’t bring himself to leave. If he sat still enough, the morning breeze, the first waft of spring and blossom, reminded him of Ojisan’s warm breath against his whiskers. He had been there all night, curled carefully within the man’s arms as he swayed against his rocking chair. For the first time since he knew Ojisan, the radio was not tuned to his favourite station, but instead packed and stowed underneath the dining table. ...

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“Atlas Rises” by Mike Panasitti

Submitted to Contest #189

It was December 2066. It was so terribly cold. Snow was falling, and it was almost dark. I was 14 years old and my mother was driving me to my father’s house in rural Wisconsin, outside of Madison. There was no way I was going to spend the obligatory Gift Exchange and New Year’s holidays with him again. Last year instead of getting me presents, he smashed my guitar against the fireplace then put the mangled remains of it as well as the notebook where I kept my musical scribblings into the burning hearth. “That’s abou...

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“Father Fox” by Graham Kinross

Submitted to Contest #189

Snowflakes caught amber beams of twilight. The fox called Father shivered on its trail through the woods. Stuttering wails echoed off trees as the vulpine wanderer felt the deep night wrap its clawing hand around the world. Infantile cries led the fox to two shivering forms intertwined. Bald little things looked into the sunset orange eyes of their savior. “Who are you?” asked Father as the children cowered away in the shadow of a banyan tree. Twined teeth chattered in the frost. “Unfinished creations of the gods? Where is your fur? No won...

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“The Fox and the Flower” by Joanna Smart

Submitted to Contest #189

“What are you doing?” Hana jerked her trekking pole away from the wolf pup she had found, swinging it blindly in the direction of the voice. A strong hand closed around the shaft of the pole. A young man was attached to that hand, making no attempt to move other than to prevent it from hitting him. He may have been her age, mid-twenties, with high cheekbones and narrow features. His hair was hidden under his dark hood, but the shaggy locks that framed his face were so blond they were practically white. He was talle...

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“An Unlikely Encounter” by Fiona Sailman

Submitted to Contest #189

The fox stared at him with wide yellow eyes, asking questions that the man could never begin to answer. It tilted its head, studying him. He swallowed, then spoke. “H…hello.” It did not respond. He didn’t really expect it to. But kitsunes were rare to spot, and even rarer to interact with. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Of course, he had to choose his words carefully. Some kitsunes were kind, gentle spirits that, if befriended, would protect you from evil spirits. However, others were bringers of chaos and misch...

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“A Legend Untold” by Shaivi S.

Submitted to Contest #189

여우.Yeou.Haneul couldn’t imagine what went through the minds of Yeou’s parents to name her something so vile. So accusing. Fox. As flattering as it is to have a human named after one’s own kind, Haneul could only imagine the poor girl growing up with eggs thrown at her head and people pushing her off swing sets. Whatever weird things bullies did in the 21st century. Maybe foxes had finally lost their bad rep around town. People can change after centuries of labeling gumihos as seductive villains for wanting to fit in with their two...

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“Google Doogle” by Tricia Cundiff

Submitted to Contest #189

I have a story to tell, though no one will believe me. When I lie in my bed at night, I barely believe it myself. But in the light of day, as I see my wife and daughter playing in the backyard, I know it all to be true. The tale must be told, although few may ever read these words. But the truth of it should be laid down, for I can take no credit for the changes in my life. I am a man of little worth, a real s.o.b. Barely able to hold on to a job, I manage to keep us from being homeless and enough food on the table. Berating my wife regularl...

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“The Test” by Valerie Zhang

Submitted to Contest #189

Buried in the Qingqiu Mountains crested with lines of pine trees and soaring peaks, lived Lin and Grandfather. They dwelled in the sloping valley at the base of the mountains, where the snow would melt to feed vegetables that were grown in Lin’s garden. In the day, she was allowed to roam wherever she wished. She tended to her garden and the goats, ran through fields of wildflowers with her bare feet, and visited the creek. Sometimes, she would see a beautiful woman with black hair dangling her feet in the crystal water. Lin later l...

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“Hoai and the Holy Fox” by Marcus Newton-Howes

Submitted to Contest #189

It was 8031 BCE. Cáo was the youngest of four kits. He struggled for recognition within the fox family, but when his mother soothed him at night in their den, she would always say, “One day Cáo, one day. If you work hard at your magic, even you may write your story into the stars.”It was 1420, and Emperor Lê Thái Tổ was racing through Lam Sơn, his bitter enemy, Marquis Li Bin of the Ming army, hot on his heels. His men had moved off at an angle to divert the pursuing enemy while the emperor moved off alone, to the protests o...

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“Spirit Fox” by Laurel Reinhardt

Submitted to Contest #189

They told me it would be like this. . .that I would be mourning the death of a fox, a wild fox, who had spent a little of his wild life with me. But I hadn’t chosen him, it was he who had chosen me as a companion for about five minutes a day for just over a month. Even on that first day I could see he was quite scrawny. They told me he probably had rabies and I should steer clear of him and call animal control, but he wasn’t aggressive or foaming at the mouth. What he was was old and, I believe, wanting a companion on his march to death....

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“A Winter’s Red Tail” by David B Fraser

Submitted to Contest #189

Huey drove and drove and drove. He hadn’t hit her that hard. Not that hard. Couldn’t have been that hard. He looked at his hands on the steering wheel and the dried stains of red. It would be dark soon. He had to get gas. He was only halfway there. He stopped on the highway shoulder and got out and washed his hands in a snowbank, all the while worrying that the passing traffic might be watching him. He got more gas and paid with the cash he had gotten maxing out his overdraft before he left hi...

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“Little Fox” by Maria Blackman

Submitted to Contest #189

Little Fox crept out of bed as her mother left. Ma Ma walked so quietly, her footsteps were barely audible as she slipped out the back door. “Ma Ma,” whispered Little Fox, trying to watch her but Ma Ma had disappeared into the murky night air. “Little Fox,” called Ba Ba. “Go back to sleep.” “Where is Ma Ma going?” “She will be back in the morning. Now go back to sleep. It’s late.” Little Fox lay back on her bed, listening to Ba Ba’s snoring next to her. Ma Ma always did return by dawn, although Little Fox had never been...

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“Little Fox's Heist” by Renarde Mignon

Submitted to Contest #189

Jikai no Dorobou, the 'next time thief', once a thriving legend, but after years she becomed nothing more than whispers. She couldn't take it anymore. Honest life was so boring. So, she slipped silently through the shadows wearing a cloak that swayed in the wind and her favorite fox mask which reflected the moonlight. The irony didn't leave her mind since she herself was ...

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Ended on 23:59 - Mar 17, 2023 EST

Won by Fabi M 🏆

Title: Decomposition Sits with You

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Write a story about a fox spirit (a gumiho, jiǔwěihú, kitsune, or hồ ly tinh), inspired by, e.g. Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese folklore.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 41 stories

“Decomposition Sits with You” by Fabi M

“狐と笛 - The Fox and the Flute” by Russell Mickler

“Whiskers in the Wind” by Sav Lightwood

“Atlas Rises” by Mike Panasitti

“Father Fox” by Graham Kinross

“The Fox and the Flower” by Joanna Smart

“An Unlikely Encounter” by Fiona Sailman

“A Legend Untold” by Shaivi S.

“Google Doogle” by Tricia Cundiff

“The Test” by Valerie Zhang

“Hoai and the Holy Fox” by Marcus Newton-Howes

“Spirit Fox” by Laurel Reinhardt

“A Winter’s Red Tail” by David B Fraser

“Little Fox” by Maria Blackman

“Little Fox's Heist” by Renarde Mignon

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story where a character must continue to tell their tale to a listener to avoid unsavory consequences.

Write a story inspired by this quote from Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy: “In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself within a dark wood where the straight way was lost.”

Write a modern version of "The Tiger, the Brahmin, and the Jackal," in which someone suffers from their own good deeds and must turn to an unlikely source for help.

Start your story with “It was so terribly cold. Snow was falling, and it was almost dark.” (Hans Christian Andersen, “The Little Match Girl”)

Contest #189

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

121

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: