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Discover weekly, the best short stories

Looking for a steady supply of east asian short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

410+ East asian Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. Discover the best new stories by East Asian authors.

East asian Short Stories – Page 20 of 28

The Power Outage

Submitted to Contest #92

Have you ever noticed the reaction of strangers getting on an elevator?  They look up (or down) to ensure that they have successfully avoided having the doors shut closed before they are safely inside.  Next they press the button by the floor number they wish to get off, and then glance at all the other buttons on the wall, the open door/close door button (which symbol opens or closes the door) and they usually notice whether the elevator has a thirteenth floor.  Finally, they will stand closest to the back of the elevator to ...

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Tsunami Tremor: March 13, 2013

Submitted to Contest #92

Fictionalized version of the very real events that occurred in March 2011 in Japan - Made on 12/19/13"Are you sure?” I asked, my fingers shaking.      “Positive. The seismograph’s off the charts. I also got a text warning, man. This is definitely not a false alarm. We have to go, now!” demanded Kosei.      The resounding roar ringed out, challenging my existence.      My time had come. Though only a beginner in the field, I prepared for that day fo...

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Autumn Rain

Winner of Contest #91 🏆

Trigger warning: Talk of self-harm and suicideHave you ever had this feeling? Like you’re a helium balloon with your string cut. A rotting piece of wood adrift in the vast ocean.Does saying it like that make me sound too pretentious? Thinking I’m some kind of literary youth. Of course I’m not. I’m just sad. Sad people tend to be under the impression that they’ve been possessed by Li Bai and suddenly know the gruesome secrets of the universe through a few lines of poetry.Second year of university; my life is great. All the sad things from the...

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Sorting

Submitted to Contest #91

It was past nine at night and Yukiko Fujihara was barely done re-organizing the books. In fact, she only managed to arrange the self-help section, and it was the smallest area in the library. Yukiko sighed and pulled her thick purple hair out of the ponytail and tied it in a messy bun. Then she stared at the piles of books in front of her and adjusted her glasses. Perhaps she should not have sent her mother away. Yukiko shook her head. ‘Not tonight,’ she thought to herself. Her mother had worked all day and needed space and privacy. Yukiko h...

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Our strict Librarian and Touchstone Theory

Submitted to Contest #91

'Keep silence, no one will disturb the atmosphere of the library,' said one of the librarians of our government library. All the readers and students were so afraid of him. He all the time scolded those who used to whisper in the library. I started my study in that library. While studying, I got few friends who were so good hearted. One day, one of my friends had a problem. He wanted to solve it. But, our library was full of rules and regulations. To speak means to get lost from the place.He dared to speak with a low voice. Suddenly, a libra...

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The Library Tonight

Submitted to Contest #91

It was 11 p.m. and the doors were closed. The lights everywhere were off, letting the shadows take over the night. A cold air hung over the place, still like the silence. The months neared winter— and with each day, the nights grew colder, the air almost seeming to hold the hints of the winter frost in its breath. Now, the library almost seemed like a place forgotten by time, and in the darkness it felt, in all its silence and stillness, like a place shivering in the cold, hiding in the darkness, hoping that someone wouldn’t find it… The s...

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His Protection

Submitted to Contest #90

      “What are the three temperatures again sweety?”            “We’re cold, the south is hot, and the west is mu- mug…”            “Muggy.”            “Yeah, that’s it!”            The man smiled as his daughter correctly remembered the three temperatures of the world. It was a shame; she’d nev...

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The Cost of Color

Submitted to Contest #90

I noticed a rose-colored slip stuck in my door, wondering who needed to leave a physical piece of message. After all, no one used mail these days. Communication had been streamlined to ocular portals, the transparent screens installed across one wall in the living room, and everyone was expected to carry their mini portal no matter what. Reaching for the slip, I jerked my hand back when its edge stabbed my hand. Ah—I forgot that the edges could be ‘sharp.’ It was not as if I knew nothing about the slip’s production. A brief unit of education...

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The Rainbow Tree and the Lost Village

Submitted to Contest #90

“The gods are parched. They need to feed.” His dark eyes wander over her face.Claire whimpers. She can feel the edge of the dagger brushing the side of her neck – blade awfully cold against her damp skin.She chokes at the ball of sob curling up in her throat.Tendrils of icy sweats trickle down her chin.Down to her jowls… And resting, finally, at the throbbing hollow in the middle. And her gut --- churning bitter bile that rises to her chest. And then the native holds the dagger up in the air. In a bat of an eyelash, she can fe...

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Mother Nature , I abide in you

Submitted to Contest #90

Raised in a country steeped in religion and mythology , there has been an imprint , naturally embedded deep in our psyche , India the land of God’s and Goddess , eternally blessed . Twame wa mata cha pita twame wa Twame wa bandhuscha sakha twame wa Twame wa vidya  draviman twame wa Twame wa sarvam mama dev a deva An invocation to the Almighty God , saying ,’’O God, You alone are my Mother, my Father,my friend, My brother,You alone are my wisdom and wealth. Indeed you alone are everything to me . These verses were stat...

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Red leaves

Submitted to Contest #90

First, there was the seed. Nobody was there to witness the wind carrying it around thanks to its little wing. Or perhaps it got tangled on the feathers of a bird. Neither the animal nor the seed can tell us where or when it all began. In any case, the seed fell to the ground. And it was dark, rich, fertile soil. Soon, the little seed was buried deep enough, yet not too deep. Rains were kind that season. The sun warmed up the land. And, among herbs and wildflowers, a little sprout emerged from the ground the following spring. “I think this pl...

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The Tiger who built a Temple

Submitted to Contest #90

The Tiger who built a Temple. Deep in the Jungles bordering Ancient India and Ancient Thailand, a Tiger chased down a Malaysian Tapir for food. Once the Tiger caught the Tapir in it's claws, it snapped the poor animal's neck with it's mighty jaw and feasted. The Forest had seen better days lately, trees chopped down, Shrub and brush lost to man made fires and storms. Prey had been hard to come across as a result. The Tiger walked a very short distance until he found a temple dedicated to the Buddha that had seen better days due to neglec...

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The Legend of the Bleeding Heart Dove

Submitted to Contest #90

A long time ago, when the hills were green with fruit trees and nothing covered the earth but flowering shrubs and soft grass, two doves, T’apat and Magiliw, fell in love. Their courtship was long and arduous, especially for T’apat, who had to best several suitors for the fair Magiliw. And since doves mated for life, Magiliw took her time in selecting a husband.  But she did choose the devoted T’apat in the end. Unfortunately, after five monsoons, the pair was still childless. The nest that T’apat caref...

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Down the Endless Tracks

Submitted to Contest #90

CHOO!CHOO!The locomotive whistles, a train’s usual high, but at the same time low sound, piercing the coal-smelling, dusty air as we take off down the tracks. We start out slow, then gain speed in the first thirty seconds. People are all around me, hoping we’ll get to Chicago for the Christmas Fair without any disturbances. I look out the window that I’m lucky to have a spot next to to see New York City’s brick buildings rushing past me. I can spot them in the distance as they're coming up, but they seem so far away. Yet before I know it, th...

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A Hero

Submitted to Contest #89

Once upon a time, there was a young man who lived in a small village. I met him at the bus stop near my university. There he was, a young gentleman in a T-shirt. He had nothing in particular to catch my attention. At that time, I was waiting for a bus to go back home as soon as possible because I needed to write an academic essay on “The Natural Environment.” To be honest, I did not know how to start it. There were fears of failing the course and negative feelings in my mind. My situation is “like a meaningless pebble on the road, bound...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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