This year’s popular annual Write Stuff competition for the Bailiwick’s young writers is launched this month and the subject is The Journey.

The competition, which is organised as part of the Guernsey Literary Festival, is in its 11th year and last year entries topped the 1,000 mark for the first time. Entries came from no fewer than 21 schools, including from Sark, Alderney and Herm, and attracted home schooled entrants as well.

The judges are illustrator, author and character designer Dapo Adeola, Louie Stowell, who writes the Loki books about magic, gods and monsters (mostly), Pari Thomson, the author of the New York Times bestselling Greenwild series, and Dr Huw Lewis Jones, polar-exploring author and naturalist, who grew up in Guernsey.

As in previous years, there are four classes, Primary (years 3-6), Intermediate (years 7-9) and Senior (years 10+), and a class for writers with additional learning needs (ALN), split into junior and senior. The competition is sponsored by Julius Baer and supported by Guernsey Literary Festival partners including the Guille-Allès Library, Aurigny, Guernsey Arts, Island Families and U&US.

The word ‘journey’ conjures up ideas of travel, which may be exciting, eventful, adventurous, disastrous, even life changing. It may suggest a metaphorical journey such as a transition; a life-changing experience leading to growth; it may be a journey through time and space; or it could be inspired by the writer’s own journey through life.

The title lends itself to myriad interpretations and genres: adventure, fantasy, historical, science fiction, a fictional memoir … the possibilities are endless.

The judges will be looking for originality, creativity, clarity, style and accuracy of language which will transport them with the writer on the journey.

There will be a cash prize of £50, a pair of Aurigny flights, Island Families membership and a trophy for the winner in each of the five categories, with £25 cash prizes for second and third places. Winners will also receive a signed book and an original illustration designed by Lynda Adlington, who has been commissioned to produce bespoke illustrations of the winning stories.

The winning stories and illustrations will also be displayed at the Guille-Allès Library and local schools.

Up to five highly commended prizes will also be available in each category. Each highly commended winner will receive a £10 book token and a certificate as well as their story published on the website.

The competition closes on 7 March and the WriteStuff winners will be announced in May. Prizes will be given out during the Guernsey Literary Festival at the Competition Awards Ceremony on Saturday 3 May. This year’s Festival runs from 25 April to 4 May.

Dapo Adeola (Primary class judge) is an illustrator, author and character designer who was awarded Illustrator of the Year at The British Book Awards in 2022. Dapo rocketed into the picture book world with his greatly acclaimed illustrator debut, Look Up!, written by Nathan Bryon and published by Puffin in 2019, which won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize in 2020.

Dapo illustrated My Dad is a Grizzly Bear and My Mum Is a Lioness written by award-winning author Swapna Haddow (both published by Macmillan Children’s Books), and collaborated with Malorie Blackman on their picture book We’re Going to Find the Monster. Dapo made his author debut in 2021 with the Puffin published picture book Hey You!: An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black, featuring 18 talented Black British illustrators, which also went on to win Illustrated Book of the Year at The British Book Awards in 2022. Born in Britain and of Nigerian heritage, Dapo is an avid believer in the importance of equal representation in the creative arts. He currently lives in Manchester.

Louie Stowell (Intermediate class judge) writes books about magic, gods and monsters (mostly). She has written carefully-researched books about space, ancient Egypt, politics and science but eventually lapsed into just making stuff up. She has written fiction for 8–12 (Nosy Crow and Walker Books US), but Loki: A Bad God’s Guide series is her first as both author and illustrator, inspired by her research into Norse myths. Louie writes full time in London, where she lives with her wife Karen, her dog Buffy and a creepy puppet that is probably cursed.

Pari Thomson (Senior class judge) is the author of the New York Times bestselling Greenwild series, as well as being an editorial director for picture books at Bloomsbury Children’s Books. Greenwild: The World Behind the Door was Blackwell’s Children’s Book of the Year and winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2023. Half Persian, half English, Pari has lived in many places, including India, Pakistan, the United States and Belgium. She studied at Oxford University and now lives in London, not far from Kew Gardens.

Dr Huw Lewis Jones (ALN judge) is a polar-exploring author and naturalist, who grew up in Guernsey. He now lives in Cornwall where he is a professor at Falmouth University, teaching natural history and other creative things. Huw also travels across the Arctic and Antarctica each year working as an expedition leader. He has written numerous books for children, including award-winning Do Bears Poop in the Woods?, Do Penguins Like the Cold?, the Bad Apple series of picture books, and the best-seller Clive Penguin. To date, his books have been published in 19 languages. Huw is a Guest Curator of the Guernsey Literary Festival.

Filter judges this year include Julia Bichard and Adam Bayfield from the Guille Allès Library, retired English teachers Maz Campbell and Sue Williams-Smith, and Suzie Almond, a creative education specialist with experience of first round judging for the BBC 500 Words and Settle Stories competitions.

Judge Huw Lewis-Jones, says:

Such fantastic stories come to us, each and every year.. and we hope this year, our eleventh, is no different. What a journey this competition has gone on too! I know I can speak on behalf of all the judges when we say, the very best of luck!

Pick up a pen and scribble some ideas down. Have a go! Perhaps you head off on a great adventure? Perhaps your journey is more mysterious and you never leave the island? Perhaps you take us to places, and to meet peoples, and creatures that we've never even imagined? The only way to begin, is to begin! So where might your story take you? We can't wait to read it!

Alexandra McInnes, Managing Director of Julius Baer Guernsey, which has sponsored the Write Stuff for a number of years, says, ‘We were delighted with the number and quality of last year’s entries and we’re looking forward to a similar response this year. All of us go on journeys, whether to wonderful places in the world or important journeys in our lives and the great thing about The Write Stuff competition is that it gives young writers the opportunity to recreate their journeys for us. We can’t wait to read the entries and be involved with what is always a fantastic competition.’

All entries should be submitted directly through the website https://2025.writestuff.gg.

For further information please contact [email protected] or call 07781 143545. A Teachers Pack and posters can also be downloaded from https://2025.writestuff.gg/guidelines-and-resources