Scottish Young Writers

Winners of innovative young people’s writing initiative announced

The winners of Scottish Book Trust’s innovative young people’s writing competition were announced today (31st March 2009) at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh, selected from nearly 250 young people from across Scotland and abroad who had submitted stories.

The winner is:
· 1st place: Emma Brown, age 14, St Andrew’s and St Bride’s High School, South Lanarkshire,
for her story, The Death Predictor
Joint runners up:
· Mathias Sean Lord, age 16, Alværn Ungdomsskole, Norway for his story, Alone
· Louise Paterson, age 16, St Columba’s School, Renfrewshire for her story, The Heat of Time

All 11 shortlisted teenagers were subsequently invited to apply for the Scottish Book Trust young people’s mentoring scheme, a new initiative to help three young people hone and develop their writing over a period of 6 months. The mentoring will consist of a mixture of face-to-face and online tutorials with Scottish Book Trust’s virtual writer-in-residence Keith Gray, as well as a visit to a top UK children’s fiction publisher and a meeting with a children’s literary agent.

The three successful applicants for Scottish Book Trust’s young people’s mentoring scheme are:
· Charlotte Gordon, age 13, Thurso Academy (Highlands)
· Katie Hart, age 14, Bearsden Academy (East Dunbartonshire)
· Mathias Sean Lord, age 16, Alværn Ungdomsskole (Norway)

After the short ceremony at the National Library of Scotland, 10 of the 11 shortlisted students stayed on for an exclusive writing workshop with Keith Gray.