Big Announcement!

The Final Selection.

Around this time last year, I launched my first Short Story Creative Writing Competition. I wanted to encourage young writers to put forward their very best work with stories of up to 500 words with the theme of Hope.

I was hoping for about forty entries and expecting to select about twenty-five of those to publish in a real paperback book. I was staggered to receive well over one hundred entries from the following schools:

Al Yasmin International School, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Royal Masonic School

St Pauls C of E Primary, Kings Langley

Northwood College

Parmiter’s Watford

St Peters Catholic Primary, Leatherhead

Cherry Tree Primary, Watford

Wood End School Harpenden

Chorleywood Primary

Beechfield School, Watford

The Beacon School, Amersham

It was difficult to select only twenty-five stories from such talented young writers and, in the end, there were fifty extraordinary stories which were so different from each other and so good they had to be included!

The stories have been edited and uploaded, ready for printing and should be available on Amazon from 1st June. I have created little illustrations to go with each story, all of which are included on the front cover.

Many, many congratulations to the winners, I am so proud of you all. Keep writing, and if you would like to enter next year's competition, I have already launched it. The theme will be Courage. You have plenty of time - May 1st 2025! If you are a winner this year and will be 14 next year, you will still be eligible to enter - I want to see what you come up with next!

So without more ado, I have listed below (in no particular order) the children whose stories are going to be published alongside their titles:

1. Hello

By Matilda Gardner - age 11

2. Your Heart with Mine

By Annabel Radburn - age 13

3. A Hike to the Peak

By Aaisha Asfiya - age 10

4. The Disappearance

By Amelia Kumuthan - age 13

5. Hope

By Aisha Lawton - age 13

6. In Between Light and Dark there is Hope

By Shrinika Kashyap - age 11

7. The Slumber

By Alba Riley - age 11

8. The Magic Library

By Emilie Menhinick - age 9

9. Spark of the Flowers

By Caitlin Johnston –Weston - age 13

10. The Uprising

By Nivethan Ambikaiseelan - age 11

11. The Choices we Make

By Siena Pitney - age 12

12. The Letter

By Insha Dharamsi - age 12

13. The Magic of the Fairy Fruit

By Sandra Sarah - age 11

14. Secret Power

By Liya Patel - age 11

15. The Citrusy Cipher

By Vanisha Barot - age 11

16. A Sense of Hope

By Jiya Gadhia - age 13

17. The Key

 By Freya Menhinick - age 11

18. Hope

By Nikkita Karia - age 10

19. Alive, or not?

By Fatima Khakoo - age 13

20. Daisy, My Dying Dog

By Shanaya Bhalsod - age 11

21. Blood, Mud, Sweat and Tears

By Ralph Warne - age 10

22. The Emerald

By Sia Kapur - age 9

23. Etiquette

By Zoya Pope - age 10

24. Beneath the Darkness

By Ruby Neale - Age 13

25. Christmas Hope

By Avni Desai - Age 12

26. The Power of Hope

By Suri Khurana - age 13

27. Wish, and the Power of Hope

By Shaan Bachada - age 9

28. The Forest Prince

By Carys Senior - age 9

29. Ninjas Forever, Cats Together

By Harley Hodson - age 11

30. The Light Inside

By Isla Boyd - age 10

31. Discovery

By Beatrix Gardner - age 8

32. Teamwork Makes the Dream Work

By Maani Chauhan - age 11

33. Lost in the Unknown

By Nakshatra Balaji - age 11

34. The Perplexing Escape From Home

By Misha Dekka - age 9

35. Despair Woods

By Ariadni Filippidou - age 9

36. I Wish I was a Witch

By Eva Agarwal - age 9

37. Vines Entwined

By Jacob Healey - age 12

38. The Drummer

By Hazel Denham - age 11

39. How I Got a Best Friend

By Sophie Steele

40. Peace

By Diya Bachada - age 11

41. Family Again

By Serena Humura -age 10

42. Stamina

By Lily Warren - age 10

43. Amber, Where Did You Go?

By Ruby England - age 11

44. The Tale of the Inseparable

By Izzy Kalitynska - age 9

45. A Lion Called Carter

By Shaan Voralia - age 10

46. The Bear Cub of Bluebell Wood

By Aoife Coggins - age 8

47. The Race Within

By Bianca Vasvari - age 12

48. Hope

By Pavaki Singh - age 10

49. The Strange Wooden Door

By Tianna Nathwani - age 8

50. The Phoenix's flight

By Kiara Shah - age 13

WELL DONE!

To enter the 2025 competition please visit the Competition page on the website.

If you would like to read Caroline's books,

The Runaway Children of Chennai and The Secret Children of Mumbai you can find them on Amazon.

#youngwriters #shortstory #hope #writingcompetition