This year, we had a 'Young Authors Competition' in the school for the children of 4th - 6th class and we were blown away by the talent and very proud of the efforts of the children who chose to enter the competition and write their own story! Each and every child deserves a special mention for the fantastic stories that they produced!
In Fourth Class, Ava wrote a lovely story called the 'Scary Forest' about a family who go on a camping trip. First and foremost, Ava's story had some wonderful descriptions of the forest but this is a story that is guaranteed to send a shiver down the spine of the reader once the very, very, very scary bear makes an appearance! Lacey wrote a heartwarming story about a girl who starts getting superpowers once she becomes a teenager. It's a very clever story that teaches us the lesson that if you are not feeling ok you should tell someone and you can fix the problem together. Sadie wrote an uplifting football story about her favorite footballer 'Katie McCabe' called 'Katie's Big Problem'! You can tell how much Sadie knows her football and this story includes flight issues, strange noises in the night and very precise details of great performances by the Irish girls on the football field! Noah wrote a very entertaining story called 'Fun Place' about a boy called Mike and his new friend called 'Bloodstroke' who team up together to try and defeat a big, scary monster who did something very nasty to Mike's father! The exciting climax of this is one is not to be missed! Eva's story, 'The Magical Flower Garden', is about a young girl called Kate who goes to the Queen's palace only to come across a magical garden where she meets a genie! Lots of hilarity ensues as a result of Kate's less than careful wish choices but the story also contains an important moral in the end! Madelyn's story 'The old man and the young boy' is a beautiful story about an old, grumpy grieving man who makes friends with a young boy. It's a truly inspirational story about friendship, support and helping each other through difficult times! Clive also produced a late entry for the competition called Alex in the Skies which he dedicated to Alex, Tom and Eimear. There is a dreamlike quality to this lovely story which brings us on a journey with Alex as he floats up in the sky with the stars and the planets!
There were also several children from Fifth Class who entered the competition which was great to see! Amy wrote an exceptional story called 'Death by Music' about a conniving music band who go to very extreme lengths indeed to eliminate the competition! The level of detail in this story is very impressive and there are a number of hilarious moments including a very funny gag about Taylor Swift! Keeva also wrote a wildly imaginative story about a group of characters who want ALL the fame to themselves! Keeva clearly has an extensive vocabulary base and there is an expertly judged flow to this darkly comic tale in which no celebrity is safe (not even poor old Neil Armstrong!) Oisin's, 'Exosphere' is a good old-fashioned, nail-biting, edge of your seat science fiction thriller! Oisin creates and then maintains a sense of urgency all throughout this story and I reckon Oisin may well have a talent for writing movie screenplays in the future! Sophia's story, 'The Worst Day Ever' is perhaps one of the most relatable of all. Fights with an annoying sibling, being late for school, getting in trouble with the teacher, forgetting your lunch... all stuff we can relate to, right? Above all, it's a very entertaining story with lots of humorous moments including a joke about a lion's den that had me laughing out loud! Niamh's, 'The War of 1960', is a story with very vivid descriptions which really bring you inside the inner thoughts of the main character Alisa who searches for her mother in the city during a war. If you like lots of twists, you will love this story! Emi's story 'I played for Dublin' is so detailed she'd put Dostoevsky to shame! It's a story about a girl called Mia and her dream to play for Dublin. A huge amount of effort clearly went into the writing of this story - Emi's passion for GAA jumps off the page and the story teaches us the importance of resilience, practice and never giving up even when we face set back after set back! Finally, Radi's story 'Matured' is a very mature piece of writing indeed. Radi's command of the English language is quite simply incredible and she produces some striking imagery to create this eerily dystopian story where the lines between reality and the dream world are very blurred indeed.
In Sixth Class, Patrick wrote a touching story called 'John's Tale' about a rich but lonely man who is struggling to find meaning in life. There is a real conversational style to Patrick's telling of this tale which includes some astute observations about life - one of the important ones being that money does not buy you happiness!

Mia wrote a story called 'The Village' about a sweet girl called Rose who is sadly consumed by an evil spirit called Laura. We follow Rose on her journey to rid Rose of Laura for once and for all and the climax of this story is absolutely breathtaking! Azel's story was actually untitled but it was an impressive piece of writing nonetheless which contained very sophisticated vocabulary and some beautiful descriptions of celestial bodies. The following description really stood out in Azel's story: 'The tapestry of the evening unfolded, leaving tales of magic and serenity'. Aoife entered a biography of Anne Frank. This was a very informative book as she documents all the important aspects of Anne's life and anyone who is interested in History should definitely read it. I must also register my compliments to Aoife for her beautiful handwriting. Jaimie technically didn't enter a story but she did enter an extract from a potential novel and I hope she continues to pursue writing this novel as Jaimee is one of the most talented creative writers we have ever had in the school and this novel has massive potential. It's a fantasy novel and we follow the lives of 'Orchid' and 'Hawthorne' and the banter between these two is so natural and often hilarious!
We are delighted to report that there are some wonderfully talented young authors here in Sruleen and though it was ultimately Eva, Madelyn, Emi and Radi who walked away with the prizes, all the children deserve massive credit for going to the effort of creating their very own story for this competition! I also should thank our wonderful SNA, Christine, who really enjoyed reading all the stories and being part of the judicial process. Hopefully, these children will use this experience to continue to create new stories and that other children in the school may also feel inspired to engage in creative writing as it is a very rewarding and exciting endeavour once you put your mind to it. Above all, it's good for the soul! Well done children!
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