3 Calgary students shortlisted for national writing contest
Young writers imagined the year 2176 for First Page challenge. Winners announced June 9.
Three Calgary students have made the shortlist for the First Page student writing challenge, a national competition that asked Grades 7 to 12 students to write the opening page of a novel set 150 years in the future.
More than 1,200 submissions came in from across Canada. Twenty-five finalists were chosen to advance, including Calgary Grade 7 student Kene Odibeli, whose entry "the day the sky cried" made the Grades 7 to 9 category. Calgary also placed two entries in the Grades 10 to 12 category: Suad Ahmed with "Thirteen" and Celina Jarrouj with "The Fading Colour."
Students were asked to imagine how current events and trends — artificial intelligence ethics, climate change, social media pressure, political division — would play out in 2176. The writing task forced young authors to think beyond today's headlines into a future shaped by choices being made now.
Five YA writers selected the finalists from the submissions. Bestselling author June Hur will choose the two winners — one from each age category — by June 9. Winners receive a year's subscription to OwlCrate, which ships monthly book boxes across Canada, plus 50 free YA titles for their school library.
The challenge reflects a shift in how educators and publishers engage young writers: not with safe prompts, but with the real questions keeping them up at night.