EVENT: 30th Annual Young Author/Illustrator Contest

The highlight of my reading this week came from a group of fifth graders and what fun that was! I was asked to be a judge for the 30th Annual Young Author/Illustrator Contest by the Centre County Library this year and gladly said yes.

The competition is for Centre County students in 1st through 6th grade. This year the stack of offerings from 5th grade was at least 12 inches high. It seemed a good way to spend an afternoon.

If you have any concerns about the abilities of our young people, believe me, this group of students would put your mind at ease. The stories were consistently entertaining and well written. I was impressed by the basic use of good grammar, spelling,etc. I am realistic enough to know that the students would be blessed with good editors in the shape of parents and teachers for these details, but the creativity had to have come from the young minds.

I read about magical wolf packs. I read about bad guys capturing clever young hostages and Santa getting stuck and rescued by a young girl and chocolate chip cookies... even pigs that could fly.

One of the things that stands out with me is how well an author handles dialogue. I was very impressed by one student who had his villains’ speech down so well. Their “tough language” was contrasted neatly with the rest of the story.

The young illustrators also proved to be very clever. Most were illustrated by the author, but several were collaborations. They ranged from simple line drawings to paintings of beautiful princess gowns. Part of the judging was on how appropriate the illustrations were to the story.  Graphic novels are permitted but I am still waiting to see one submitted.

The judges shared with the group when something really caught their attention. We all liked the story that had been taken from “South Park”, character names and all. ( That story did not make the cut.)

Each grade had to have a First Place, a Second Place, A Third Place and two Honorable Mentions. Our table had some very hard decisions to make.  There were so many really good ones, but several did stand out. It is a shame that we could only select five and the public will miss out on some that were equally entertaining.

The awards ceremony will be held on May 6, 2015 at the Bellefonte High School Auditorium from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm. There the winners will receive their awards plus have selections read from their story. It is open to the public and the excitement rivals any Oscar or Tony presentation.

The first place winners will be hardbound and kept in the Centre County Library’s  permanent collection. Some day when you are in the library, you might want to take a look at what our Centre County students are doing. You will be impressed.