A year 7 pupil’s short story will be read by award-winning authors, including Mark Haddon, as part of a national writing competition.
Abigail Carr, a pupil at East Point academy in Suffolk, impressed judges in the First Story National Writing competition with her short story The Girl and the Footprints.
Carr is one of 24 students in the key stage 3 category who have been selected to go through to the next round in which authors Haddon (The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time), Juno Dawson (All of the Above) and Salena Godden (Springfield Road, The Good Immigrant) will read the longlisted pupils’ work.
A shortlist will then be announced, with the successful writers invited to an awards ceremony in London. Prizes will include a creative writing residential course and publication in a professional anthology.
The contest asked secondary pupils to write a poem or short story around the theme of “footprints”.
East Point’s literacy co-ordinator, Mary-Jane King, said: “I was very impressed with the quality, imagination, and range of stories associated with the theme.
“Choosing the best ones from so many creative pieces was tough, but Abigail’s moving story stood out.”
Your thoughts