Calling all young authors! We’re looking for teen writers going into grades 7 to 12 to create original short stories on the theme butterfly effect! Finalists will receive a gift card and have their submissions added to the library’s permanent collection! This contest is organized by the teen advisory groups at NVCL and NVDPL.
Incorporate the theme Butterfly Effect. Be creative with the theme. Your story can involve cause and effect; little things having big impact; change and metamorphosis — or any ideas that this theme inspires! It is not necessary to include the phrase itself in your story.
Submission deadline: Sept. 7.
Submit your story on or after June 9
The writers will be celebrated at an awards ceremony in mid-October. All participants will have the opportunity to read from their stories at the event. There will be an audience choice award awarded at the ceremony.
Prizes will be awarded and include the following:
- Overall winner: $50 gift card
- First place: grades 7 – 9, $25 gift card
- First place: grades 10 – 12, $25 gift card
- Honourable mention: grades 7-9, $15 gift card
- Honourable mention: grades 10-12, $15 gift card
- Audience choice award (will be awarded to an author who reads from their submitted work at the awards ceremony): $50 gift card
Rules:
- The contest is open to anyone going into grades 7 – 12 who lives or goes to school on the North Shore.
- Maximum 5,000 words.
- Your work must be submitted in .doc, .docx, .pdf, .rtf, or .txt format. Please use standard margins, 12-point font, and double-spacing.
- Do not title your story "Butterfly Effect" or "Writing Contest".
- Do not include your name or other identifying information on the document. This will be included on the submission form only.
- Only one entry per applicant will be considered. The submission should be an original short story written by you in 2025.
Entries will be read by a panel of local authors, teens on the organizing committee and librarians. Submissions will be judged on the following elements: incorporation of the theme, development of plot and characters, structure, creativity, and mechanics (spelling, grammar, etc.).