Historical and mythology-inspired fiction gives writers a tantalizing opportunity to explore gaps in the records, intriguing characters, unexplained plot twists, and to tie research together with the power of imagination. Fiction has a way of expressing the truth, and in these stories we can glimpse a little of what it means to be human across eras and cultures.
Echoes & Origins is the new anthology of winning and shortlisted stories from the 2024 Ink of Ages Fiction Prize. Organized by World History Encyclopedia and sponsored by Oxford University Press, the annual international short story competition celebrates historical and mythology-inspired fiction from emerging and experienced writers around the world.
These 17 short stories transport readers across centuries and cultures, reimagining lives and events both forgotten and familiar – from the priestesshood of Athena Nike to the Western Front of WWI, the Hungry Ghost Festival and the Siege of Suiyang in China, to the execution of Ottoman Prince Mustafa.
In Echoes & Origins, readers meet mythological and folkloric figures like Calon Arang from Java and Bali, Isis and Osiris from ancient Egypt, and the Selkies of Northern Europe. Drawing on hope, humor, grief, and wonder, these stories reflect our shared curiosity and offer us glimpses of what it means to be human.
Available Now
The book is available in several formats in multiple shops.
Hardcover
Paperback
eBook
Patreon Amazon Kindle Google Play Books Apple Books Barnes & NobleKobo
Stories from Around the World
- Circles in the Sand by Sallyann Halstead – First Prize
Inspired by the life of Carl Gauss, the mathematician. This story is based on a snippet of a story about how Gauss only discovered he'd been writing to a woman, the French mathematician Sophie Germain, when she unmasked herself to make sure he was safe. Truth is, as they say, often stranger than fiction. - Myrrhine by Jenyth Evans – Second Prize
A set of three inscriptions about the priestesshood of Athena Nike inspired this piece. This story explores the fragmentary glimpses these inscriptions give
into Myrrhine's life: her father's pride in her position, the tantalizing possibility that she didn't come from a noble family in Athens, and the complex feelings she might have experienced at gaining such an honor. - A Somewhat Laughing Matter by Bill C. Wilson – Third Prize
Inspired by the Western Front of the First World War. - The Untold Story of the Murder of Isis by Victoria Alvear – Highly Commended
Inspired by the ancient Egyptian myth of Isis and Osiris and the beginning of the erasure of the power of the goddess. - After the Siege by Daniel Wan – Highly Commended
Inspired by the Siege of Suiyang in China, 757 CE. - Mater Patriae by Sherry Christie
Inspired by Caesar Augustus's thwarted attempts to find a successor within his family. - The Seventh Month by Nandita Ray
Inspired by the Hungry Ghost Festival. - The Coin by E. Jamieson
Inspired by the story of the first marathon, after the unexpected Greek victory over the Persians at Marathon in 490 BCE. - End of Days by E. V. Wallace
Inspired by the Theran Eruption circa 1550 BCE. - Bequeath by Susan James
Inspired by what happened to Oliver Cromwell's head after he was posthumously executed. - Moment of Grace by Tracy Bradford
Inspired by the Great Plague, London, 1665. - Tools of Fate by Rafah
Inspired by the execution of Ottoman Prince Mustafa in 1553. - Between Two Worlds by Suzanne Scheideker Cook
Inspired by Selkies from Northern European folklore. - Ruby Crane by Dava Street
Inspired by Ruby Vera Crane (1912-2011), who walked blinded soldiers around a WWI rehabilitation center from the age of three. - To Be Free by Louis Hill
Inspired by the Trojan Horse in Greek mythology. - Girl Beasts by Firza Hapsari
Inspired by Calon Arang from Javanese and Balinese myth. - Mnemosyne and Her Muses by A. S. Rowe
Inspired by the ancient Greek myth of the Muses and their song contest with Thamyris, as told in Hesiod's Theogony.
About Ink of Ages
The Ink of Ages Fiction Prize is World History Encyclopedia’s international short story competition, run annually and supported by Oxford University Press. The competition welcomes submissions of historical fiction and mythology-inspired fiction in two main categories – adult and youth – and maintains its commitment to accessibility by remaining free to enter, whilst offering professional-level judging and support. Now in its third year, the 2026 competition received its first-ever cash prize of $1,000 USD and saw remarkable growth since its inception – attracting 510 adult entries and 147 youth entries, compared to 147 adult entries (no youth contest) in 2024.
Echoes & Origins is the first published volume of the competition, with anthologies of the winning and shortlisted stories from 2025 and 2026 to be published later this year.
Comments from the Judges
“In the imaginations of these talented writers, history and myth stand, move, and move us in ways that only the best fiction can.”
Stefan Vranka, Oxford University Press
“What amazed me about the submissions was the diversity of styles and choices of subject, which I thought was really wonderful.”
Dr. Louise M. Pryke, Sydney University
