Editorial Team・Sep 28, 2026・16 mins read
Red lanterns glowing over a street, a family crowded around a reunion table, a lion dancer mid-leap, a child holding an envelope a little too tightly — Lunar New Year is full of scenes that already contain a story. These Lunar New Year picture writing prompts pair a vivid image with a clear writing task, so writers start from something to look at rather than a blank page.
Below are 65 prompts in six themes: family reunions, red envelopes and food, festival nights, zodiac legends, classroom activities, and heritage and content creation. Each one describes the picture and then the writing task. Use them with a real photo, a picture you generate yourself, or any AI chatbot to brainstorm and get feedback.
Start by looking before writing. Ask who is in the picture, what they are feeling, what cultural details appear and what the light, sound and smell might be — firecrackers, incense, steaming dumplings, cold winter air. Then ask what happened just before the moment and what will happen next. Most strong picture writing comes from that gap.
If you do not have the right photo, create one. Paste the scene from any prompt below into an AI image generator such as Nano Banana Pro and you have a custom picture in seconds — useful for classrooms where every student needs a slightly different image.
Lunar New Year is celebrated differently across Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean and many other communities, with different names, foods and customs. Invite writers to draw on their own family traditions, and when writing about a culture that is not your own, check details with people who celebrate it.
Eleven prompts about the people around the table. These work well for personal narratives and memoir-style writing. For gentle, detailed feedback on a draft, try Claude Sonnet 5.
1. The reunion table
Picture: three generations crowded around a round table covered in New Year dishes, everyone talking at once. Write the conversation happening at the table, giving each person a distinct voice and one thing they are not saying out loud.
2. Coming home after years away
Picture: a young adult with a suitcase standing at a front door decorated with red couplets. Describe the minute before they knock — what they notice, what has changed and what they are afraid has changed in them.
3. The quiet kitchen
Picture: an empty kitchen early in the morning, pots already simmering, ingredients lined up on the counter. Write the scene from the point of view of the person who woke up first to cook for everyone.
4. The youngest at the table
Picture: a small child peeking over the edge of a busy dinner table. Retell the whole evening from their height and their understanding, including one tradition they get charmingly wrong.
5. The empty chair
Picture: a family photo at a reunion dinner with one place setting left untouched. Write about who is missing and why, and how the family keeps them present during the celebration.
6. Cleaning the house
Picture: a family sweeping, dusting and sorting old things in the days before the New Year. Write about an object found while cleaning that brings back a forgotten memory.
7. The family photo
Picture: a large family squeezing together for a New Year group photo, someone setting a timer and running into frame. Describe the ten seconds before the shutter clicks, moving through each person’s thoughts.
8. A tradition passed down
Picture: a grandparent guiding a grandchild’s hands as they fold dumplings or wrap rice cakes. Write the lesson being taught — not just the technique, but what the grandparent hopes the child will remember.
9. The house through five senses
Picture: a home decorated for Lunar New Year, full of people and food. Describe the house using all five senses, one paragraph each, without ever naming the holiday.
10. The last celebration in this home
Picture: moving boxes stacked in the corner of a room decorated for the New Year. Write about the final Lunar New Year a family celebrates in the house before they move.
11. Celebrating far from home
Picture: a student in a small apartment abroad, video-calling family on a laptop beside a single plate of New Year food. Write the call, and what the student does after hanging up.
Eleven prompts built around hongbao, lì xì and the dishes that carry wishes for the year ahead. To create a matching food or table scene, borrow ideas from our ChatGPT prompts for image generation.
12. The tightly held envelope
Picture: a child clutching a red envelope with both hands, eyes shining. Write what they are hoping is inside and what they plan to do with it — then reveal what is really inside.
13. The advice that comes with it
Picture: a grandparent handing a red envelope to a grandchild and holding on for a moment. Write the blessing or piece of advice they give, and why it matters more than the money.
14. The envelope speaks
Picture: a single red envelope with gold lettering resting on a wooden table. Write its story in the first person — who chose it, who carried it and who it was finally given to.
15. A secret message
Picture: an opened red envelope with a folded handwritten note instead of money. Write what the note says, who wrote it and how it changes the reader’s New Year.
16. Found years later
Picture: a faded, unopened red envelope discovered at the back of an old drawer. Write the story of how it was forgotten and what happens when it is finally opened.
17. Dumplings and stories
Picture: a family folding dumplings together at a flour-dusted table. Write the stories and gossip shared while their hands are busy, and the one dumpling that hides a coin.
18. The meaning of a dish
Picture: a whole steamed fish, a sticky rice cake or a tray of candied fruit placed at the centre of the table. Write a short explanation of what the dish symbolises for your family, then a scene where someone learns that meaning for the first time.
19. When a dish goes wrong
Picture: a cook staring at a burnt or collapsed dish an hour before guests arrive. Write how the family reacts, and how the mistake becomes the best part of the evening.
20. A first taste
Picture: a friend from another culture holding chopsticks over an unfamiliar New Year dish while the family watches. Describe the first bite from both sides of the table.
21. The recipe card
Picture: a stained, handwritten recipe card for a New Year dish, with notes in different handwriting. Write the history of the card through the people who added to it.
22. The missing ingredient
Picture: an empty space on the counter where one essential ingredient should be. Write the frantic search across a closed-for-the-holiday neighbourhood, and who comes to the rescue.
Eleven prompts full of movement, light and noise — ideal for practising vivid description and action writing.
23. The dance fills the street
Picture: a dragon dance winding through a crowded street, drums pounding and confetti in the air. Describe the energy of the scene in a single breathless paragraph, then a slow, quiet one.
24. Inside the lion
Picture: a lion dancer mid-leap on a partner’s shoulders. Write from inside the costume — the heat, the drumbeat, the trust between the two dancers and the moment before landing.
25. A first lion dance
Picture: a toddler on a parent’s shoulders, half thrilled and half terrified, as a lion dance approaches. Write the experience in short, child-like sentences.
26. Backstage after the performance
Picture: tired dancers sitting on the floor of a back room, costume heads resting beside them. Write the conversation they have once the crowd has gone.
27. A sky full of lanterns
Picture: hundreds of glowing red lanterns strung above a night market. Choose one person in the crowd below and write the wish they make as they look up.
28. The lantern that drifted away
Picture: a single lantern floating away from the rest over dark water. Write about the secret it carries and where it finally comes to rest.
29. From above the crowd
Picture: an aerial view of a festival street at night, lights and people moving like a river. Describe the scene from above, then zoom in on three small moments happening at once.
30. Firecrackers at midnight
Picture: a street lit by fireworks at the stroke of midnight, families covering their ears and laughing. Write the moment the old year ends and the new one begins, using sound as your main sense.
31. Watching from the shadows
Picture: a bright festival scene with one figure standing apart in a dark doorway. Write about who they are and why they are watching rather than joining in.
32. The flower market
Picture: a busy New Year flower market with peach blossoms, kumquat trees and plum branches being carried home on motorbikes and shoulders. Write about someone choosing the perfect tree and what it means to them.
33. A poem of red and gold
Picture: a close-up of lanterns, couplets and gold paper cuttings against a red wall. Write a short poem in which the colours themselves are the characters.
Sound and movement are hard to write, so read these drafts aloud. For prompt 33 or any short piece you want to shape into verse, the AI poem generator can suggest forms and rhythms to try.
Eleven prompts for imaginative fiction rooted in zodiac animals and New Year legends. For quick variations on any story starter, Claude Haiku 4.5 can generate several angles in seconds.
34. The zodiac animal comes to life
Picture: a paper cutting of this year’s zodiac animal stuck to a window, its edges beginning to glow. Write the night it steps out of the paper and into the house.
35. The great race
Picture: twelve animals lined up at the edge of a wide river at dawn. Retell the legend of the zodiac race from the point of view of the animal who came last.
36. The cat and the rabbit
Picture: a cat and a rabbit sitting side by side on a zodiac wheel. In the Vietnamese zodiac the cat takes the rabbit’s place. Write a playful story explaining how the two settled the matter.
37. Born on New Year’s Day
Picture: a newborn wrapped in red cloth while fireworks light the window. Write the life of a character born at the exact moment the new year began, and how people’s expectations shape them.
38. The monster that fears red
Picture: a village hanging red banners and lighting firecrackers as a shadowy creature approaches from the mountains. Retell the legend of Nian in your own words, from the villagers’ side or the creature’s.
39. The Kitchen God’s report
Picture: a small kitchen shrine with offerings of sweets before the New Year. Write the report the Kitchen God gives to the heavens about this family’s year — honest, funny and kind.
40. A wish with a price
Picture: a person writing a wish on a red ribbon and tying it to a tree at a temple. Write a story in which the wish comes true, but not in the way they expected.
41. The time traveller
Picture: a confused stranger in clothing from another century standing in the middle of a modern New Year street fair. Write their first hour in the present and what feels surprisingly familiar.
42. The festival that never ends
Picture: the same New Year’s Eve scene photographed on what the calendar says is the 300th day in a row. Write a story about a town stuck in an endless celebration and the person who notices first.
43. The festival mystery
Picture: a lion dance head left alone in the middle of an empty street the morning after the festival. Write a short mystery explaining how it got there.
44. Only the child can see it
Picture: a child staring at something in the lantern-lit sky that every adult around them ignores. Write what the child sees and how they try to convince everyone else.
Eleven prompts designed for students, with simpler tasks first and longer pieces at the end. For lesson plans, differentiation and marking, see our ChatGPT prompts for teachers.
45. Five things I see
Picture: any Lunar New Year street or home scene. List five things you can see, three sounds you might hear and one smell, then turn your list into three descriptive sentences.
46. Colours and feelings
Picture: a room decorated in red and gold. Describe the colours you see and explain how each one makes you feel, and why you think these colours are used at New Year.
47. A question for someone in the picture
Picture: a family celebration with many people. Choose one person and write three questions you would ask them, then imagine and write their answers.
48. A letter to a friend
Picture: a lantern festival at night. Write a letter to a friend who has never seen Lunar New Year, describing this picture and inviting them to celebrate with you.
49. Diary of New Year’s Day
Picture: a child waking up on the first morning of the New Year in brand-new clothes. Write a diary entry for the whole day, from morning to bedtime.
50. Explain it to someone new
Picture: a red envelope, a lantern or a plate of New Year food. Explain this tradition to a classmate who has never heard of it, in five clear sentences.
51. New Year in another country
Picture: two photos side by side of Lunar New Year celebrations in two different countries. Compare what is the same and what is different, and say which details you would most like to experience.
52. My favourite part
Picture: your own photo or drawing of how you celebrate. Write about your favourite part of Lunar New Year and give three reasons why it matters to you.
53. Before and after
Picture: a moment from a New Year celebration. Write one paragraph about what happened just before the picture was taken and one about what happens just after.
54. A simple story for language learners
Picture: a family eating together at New Year. Using the words family, red, dumplings, happy and wish, write a short story of six to eight simple sentences.
55. The lesson in the picture
Picture: an older relative and a child sharing a quiet moment during the celebration. Write a short story that teaches a lesson about kindness, patience or respect, and state the lesson in your final sentence.
For younger students, pair prompts 45 to 47 with a real classroom photo before moving on to the longer tasks. For more study and writing support across subjects, see our ChatGPT prompts for education.
Ten prompts for essays, personal reflection and seasonal content. For social posts, the Instagram caption generator helps you write captions, and the AI blog writer can turn an idea into a full post.
56. Honouring ancestors
Picture: a family altar with photographs, incense and fresh fruit. Write a reflective piece about what remembering ancestors at New Year means to you or your community.
57. Old and new
Picture: a grandmother in traditional dress beside a teenager filming the celebration on a phone. Write an essay about how traditions change and what should stay the same.
58. Identity at New Year
Picture: someone celebrating Lunar New Year in a city where few others do. Write a personal essay about how the holiday connects you to who you are and where you come from.
59. Breaking a tradition
Picture: a family debating around the table as someone suggests doing things differently this year. Write the scene so that both sides are understandable.
60. Gratitude for the year
Picture: a quiet moment after the celebration, plates cleared, lanterns still glowing. Write a gratitude list for the year that has ended and one intention for the year ahead.
61. Social media caption set
Picture: your own New Year photo — a table, a street, a family moment. Write five captions in different tones (warm, funny, nostalgic, poetic and short) and three respectful hashtags.
62. A seasonal blog post
Picture: a market stall selling New Year decorations. Outline a blog post inspired by the scene — a hook, three sections and a closing — that shares a tradition and a personal story.
63. A short brand story
Picture: a small family business decorated for the New Year, the owner greeting regular customers. Write a 150-word story the business could share, focused on community rather than selling.
64. One picture, five stories
Picture: any single image from this list. Use an AI chat to generate five completely different story ideas from it — a comedy, a mystery, a memoir, a fable and a letter — then choose one and write it yourself.
65. Next year’s picture
Picture: an empty frame on the wall. Describe the photo you hope will fill it at next year’s celebration — who is in it, where you are and what has changed.
Chat Smith brings writing and image tools together in one app. Generate the picture for any prompt, then ask several AI models for story angles, tone changes or feedback on your draft — useful for teachers preparing a class set or creators planning a week of seasonal posts. Keep the actual writing yours, and use AI to spark ideas and polish them.
Want to share your story as a New Year card, poster or social post? Chat Smith Design Studio lets you start from a ready-made template or describe your idea in one line, then customise colours, text and style simply by asking.
Lunar new year picture writing prompts pair an image, like a family reunion dinner, a lion dance, or fireworks, with a writing task so students describe what they see or imagine happening next. Teachers use these visual prompts to spark storytelling in class. Chat Smith can quickly generate similar festive scene images for writing time.
The Chat Smith Editorial Team brings together AI enthusiasts, researchers, and creators to make AI accessible and practical. We share trends, tool reviews, and actionable guides that help individuals and businesses stay informed, boost productivity, and get more from AI.
