Talented young writers were recognised at the 2023 Armadale Young Writers’ Awards presentation evening last Friday.
The prize for most outstanding story of the competition was awarded to Year 8 student Mudith Kariyawasam for his story about a fishing trip for two brothers which turns to tragedy as a storm intensifies and washes one of them away.
The judges commented on the excellent characterization of the natural elements, with the sky and the sea described in musical terms which work on the reader powerfully.
The competition was open to students who live or go to school in the City of Armadale in Years 3 to 12.
Students interested in entering the competition received some great writing tips and encouragement from local author Deb Fitzpatrick during in-house workshops, held ahead of them putting pen to paper.
The award winners received a copy of the book containing the winning works and other prizes during the presentation attended by the mayor, councillors, judges and families.
Mayor Ruth Butterfield said the city is proud to support and promote creative writing and expression by young people in our local community.
“This year we celebrated the 13th anniversary of the award and had a great response with a total of 168 entries received,” she said.
“I’m so impressed with the standard of entries and excited to see what the future brings for these imaginative young writers. Our judges Alia Parker and Margaret Robson Kett had a difficult task selecting the winners for each category.”
