It's time for all budding young writers to get to work on their entries for the It's All Write! Teen Short Story Contest. Sixth through twelfth graders are invited to submit a short story.
The annual event is sponsored by the Ann Arbor District Library. There are three categories: grades 6-8, grades 9 and 10, and grades 11 and 12, and each group is judged separately. The top three writers in each age group win cash worth a grand total of $1,500.
Stories can be submitted until March 13. Winners will be announced on June 7 at the Ann Arbor District Library during a special event featuring Young Adult author Rebecca Donovan.
Now in its 23rd year, funding for the It's All Write! Teen Short Story Contest awards comes from the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library.
"The contest's longevity is based on the sheer amount of interest which keeps growing each year," said Kayla Pennoyer, library technician for Youth and Adult Services at the AADL. "A unique part of the contest is the panel of published Young Adult authors who judge the stories. It's so inspirational for young writers to know that their idols are reading their hard work."
Pennoyer says that you don't have to be from Michigan to submit a story.
"Last year we received a record number of 358 submissions, arriving from as far away as Australia," she said.
Winning stories will be published in a booklet and on the aadl.org website. For more information, email Pennoyer at allwrite@aal.org. To see the contest guidelines, go to www.aadl.org/events/itsallwrite.
