GET WRITING WITH STABILO STORIES

In celebration of International Literacy Day, we’ve partnered with hit West End musical WICKED to celebrate Back to School with our biggest children’s short story competition yet!

We're passionate about handwriting development, and this summer WICKED are helping us encourage children to practice their handwriting and hone their creative skills.

The award-winning stage musical imagines an ingenious backstory and future possibilities to the lives of L. Frank Baum’s beloved characters from ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'. WICKED tells the untold story of an unlikely but profound friendship between two sorcery students and how their extraordinary adventures in Oz will ultimately see them fulfil their destinies as Glinda The Good and the Wicked Witch of the West.

STABILO STORIES

We’re looking for talented young authors, aged 7-11 years, to write a short story on one of the following WICKED-inspired themes:

• casting a spell for good
• the effect of rumours or "fake news"
• friendship
• bullying and prejudice
• transformation

PRIZES

Three lucky winners will win an amazing money-can’t-buy prize – having their story read aloud by the WICKED cast in a Facebook video. PLUS, STABILO Back to School goodie bag, and theatre tickets to see WICKED in London. T&Cs apply.

HOW TO ENTER 

Print out our writing template below, write your story, and then post a photo of the handwritten pages to our Facebook page.

RULES

• Story must be written on no more than 2 sides of A4 paper 
• Where possible, entries must be written on the official story template availble for download below
• Entrants must be aged between 7-11 years old 
• Entries must be hand-written
• Writing must be original and your own ideas
• Judges criteria: originality, narrative, descriptive language
• Ensure that all entries include your name and age 
• Open to UK residents only

Please read the full Terms and Conditions for the competition

GETTING STARTED

Need some help to start writing? Try answering the questions below to help you shape your story.

Who is your story about?

Imagine the character - maybe draw a picture to help you describe them. Are they a witch, wizard, animal or something else?

• What is their name?
• Where do they live?
• Do they have a job or hobby?
• Where do they come from?
• What do they love?
• What to they not like?

Where does your story take place?

Imagine your character describing that place...

• What can they see?
• What can they smell?
• What can they hear?
• What can they feel or touch?

What happens in your story?

• How does the story start?
• Something goes wrong! What happened?
• The problem is solved! How?
• How does the story finish?

Now, write your story and submit it for entry on the STABILO Facebook page

ABOUT WICKED YOUNG WRITER AWARDS

If you enjoy taking part in STABILO Stories, look out for WICKED’s own writing competition, launched each year in the Autumn.

WICKED is based on the acclaimed adult novel ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ by Gregory Maguire. The inspiration for the novel came from the stories and characters created by L. Frank Baum in his classic children’s book ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’, first published in 1900.

The "prestigious Wicked Young Writer Awards" (The Times) was established by the long-running musical WICKED with the aim to inspire young people to look at life differently through creative writing. Since its launch in 2010, more than 40,000 entries have been received for the award. The Award encourages creativity and helps develop writing talent in young people between 5-25 years old from all backgrounds and areas of the UK.

For more information on how to enter the 2020 Awards, and tips for young writers, visit https://www.wickedyoungwriterawards.com/ 

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