Journey's end for student story-tellers

It was the end of a journey today for young story-writers who entered a prestigious annual competition.

Gloria Rukeyser, great-granddaughter of celebrated Manx novelist Sir Hall Caine, presented prizes to the 51 winners of the annual fiction writing competition that bears her ancestor’s name. 

Students in full-time education were invited to pen a short story, a memoir or the opening chapter of a novel on the subject of ‘journeys’. The competition, the third, attracted a record 1,045 entries, 445 more than last year.

The winners of the Hall Caine Prize for Creative Writing gathered at the Manx Museum to be rewarded by Mrs Rukeyser, who, like her famous ancestor, is a writer and journalist and whose family still occupies the novelist’s former home, historic Greeba Castle.

Mrs Rukeyser, who generously sponsors the competition, told winners: ‘I'm always interested in why a writer chooses to write a certain type of fiction and I was happy to see how varied the top entries are. We have mystery, we have fantasy, we have strong, fast-flowing narrative to draw us in, we have characters that we care about.’

Entries were in four categories: Primary, Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5/IoM College, with cash prizes totalling £2,235 and certificates for first, second and third placed and highly commended students.

Emma Hawke, a Year 6 pupil at Cronk-y-Berry School, won the first prize of £100 in the Primary category with her story, The House. She said:

‘I wanted to have a go at writing a murder mystery story, which is a real change for me, as I usually write action and adventure. I was inspired by a talk given recently by local author Chris Ewan on how he writes mystery novels and decided to use his ideas when writing this story opening.’

In Key Stage 3, Catriona Dorrian, a student at Ballakermeen High School, took the first prize of £150 with Carriage 13, a fantasy story. Catriona said: ‘I like reading fantasy novels. They give me lots of ideas. There no special inspiration for this story: the ideas just flowed.’

Key Stage 4 winner, and the recipient of £175, was Willoughby Whittle, from St Ninian’s High School, who repeated his success of last year when he was highly commended. He said of his story, The Journeyman:

‘My story was about the voyage of the wind as it travels from North Africa, over the Atlantic to America. I write about the events it sees, as well as those it creates, and personify the wind by describing how it is affected by these events.

I got the idea for my story when I was sitting at my desk. I was writing some initial ideas when a strong gale rattled my windows. This got me thinking on how the wind travels around the world, and the things it must experience.’

Key Stage 5 winner Harry Snape, who is at Queen Elizabeth II High School, was presented with £200 for his entry, Leather Bound.

‘My story was inspired by my own dreams of becoming a published author, and my feelings are mirrored in my entry,’ Harry said. ‘As a lover of reading and a regular visitor to the Family and Mobile Library since the age of two, I have always enjoyed a good story and my ambition has always been to write one of my own. The Hall Caine Prize gave me the opportunity to do this, for which I am very grateful.’

The judges, who saw only the entries and not the authors’ names/schools, were: Primary – Headteachers Jill Gill (Ballacloan Infants) and David Jenkins (Dhoon Primary); Key Stages 3 –Rachael Clarke, English and media studies teacher at Ballakermeen High School, and Karen Maloney, Second in English Castle Rushen High School; Key Stage 4 – Archana Kamble, from Castle Rushen High School, and Jeanette Weatherall from the Isle of Man College of Further and Higher Education; Key Stage 5/Isle of Man College – Rachel Withington, Head of English at St Ninian’s High School, and Usha Kishore, Key Stage 5 Co-ordinator for English at Queen Elizabeth II High School.

They scored the entries on strong characterisation, good narrative flow and imaginative story-telling.

Mrs Rukeyser thanked the judges, several of whom are retiring after three years’ involvement with the competition.

The winning students’ proud headteachers were in the audience at the Manx Museum to see them accept their prizes.

Tim Crookall MHK, Minister for Education and Children, thanked Mrs Rukeyser for her generous sponsorship of the competition and said:

‘To win a writing competition at this age is a superb achievement and shows you have the talent to go much further. We may be in the presence of the next JK Rowling or Michael Morpurgo.’

The competition is open to all students who are in full-time education in the Isle of Man. The theme for 2013/14 will be announced in September and schools’ participation will form part of their work towards Island of Culture 2014. Taking part is also an accredited Children’s University activity, earning young people stamps in their ‘passports to learning’.

Winning entries can be read on the DEC’s website www.gov.im/dec and winners will, for the first time, receive a booklet containing their work, as will all schools and public libraries.

The Minister is pictured with Mrs Rukeyser and the students who won first, second and third prizes.

Full list of prize-winners: