Creative Writing Contest

2009-2010 CREATIVE WRITING CONTEST: Things
Deadline has passed.

Winners receive prizes from local businesses, a free workshop with a noted author, are published in UpStarts Spring 2010, and read at the Glitterary Word Festival on April 24, 2010 at the Eugene Public Library.

Who: (note: by age, not by grade) Age groups: 5-8, 9-10, 11-13, 14-18 years
New category! Youth sponsored! Writers of any age, invited by a young writer enter the contest
Deadline: Postmarked February 1, 2010
Winners notified by March 8, 2010

This year's theme is "Things"!

Inspirations in literature:
•The sword Excalibur was an important thing to King Arthur and Odysseus needed his unique bow
• Two friends have extraordinary adventures because of a golden compass, a subtle knife and an amber spyglass in Phillip Pullman’s fantasy novels
• A hand-made doll helped Vasilisa in the folktale of that name
• What would the story of The Hobbit be without the ring-thing?
• Real toys belonging to the real child, Christopher Robin, inspired Winnie-the-Pooh, and in The Velveteen Rabbit the author imagined a toy with feelings.  
• What is a princess without a crown or a wizard without a wand?

Inspirations in everyday life:
• Things can become so important to us, that we name them, or give them a special place on our wall or on our pillow
• A thing can feel creepy, a squat teapot, a sleek chair, aggressive shoes…  a lab coat 
• Sometimes we imbue things with lucky powers, like an athlete wearing a Lucky Shirt for every game
• A shovel is important to a gardener and a passport to an international traveler, a bike for visiting a friend
• In this western culture, Things overflow store shelves and land fills.

Thinking about Things, what One Thing might inspire an adventure story, a picture book, a comic tale, an ode, lament, obituary (or elegy), a tall-tale, a fantasy story, or poem?

Books, stories and poems to inspire creative writing on the theme of Things:
Elementary School
Middle School
High School

Writing prompts for middle school students from YWA Writing Mentor Carter Mckenzie
Writing prompts for high school students from YWA Writing Mentor Carter Mckenzie

Guidelines -- Submission deadline has passed --
• Have fun and use your imagination making sure a Thing is a significant element in your story or poem. All writing genres welcome.
• Your entry should be less than 600 words, and no smaller than size 12 font if typed.
• Be sure to include name, age (not grade), home phone number & address, as well as the school you attend.
• Keep a copy for yourself; we won’t be able to return your work. 
• Send to YWA Contest, P.O. Box 51538, Eugene, OR 97405 or email: ywalouisa@aol.com

Questions? Contact Louisa Lindsay-Sprouse at ywalouisa@aol.com or 541-485-2259.