How to enter

All stories must be submitted via the online form on our website.

Parents, guardians and teachers can register for a SUBMITTER ACCOUNT, or by following the links at the top of this page. Once an account has been created, it can be used to upload a single story or a whole school’s worth of tales with our new top tool! For more information on how to enter a story into this year’s competition, please visit our Submit Your Story page.

What are the prizes?

As well attending a spectacular 500 Words Final at Buckingham Palace where superstar celebrities will read the winning stories live on the radio, six amazing illustrators: Tony Ross, Fiona Lumbers, David McKee, Sue Cheung, David Roberts, and Margaret Sturton – will each be set the task of illustrating one the winning stories.

The winners in each age category will also receive:

Gold Winners – Chris Evans’ height in books and 500 books for their school.

Silver Winners – HRH The Duchess of Cornwall’s height in books.

Bronze Winners – Their own height in books.

There is also a BRAND NEW Prize for 2020 and it doesn’t matter how good your story is just that you enter one. One entrant will be selected at random to receive a fabulous book bundle and an invite to the final (for child plus a parent or guardian). They will also win 500 books for their school – so the more pupils a school has that has entered the more chances they have of winning a brand new library.

Enter your 500 short story online. Click the link to find out more about it

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4n1HgL2GFCWDmCtq9Sx5kKB/500-words-2020

Year 11 enjoyed a trip to watch a production of ‘A Christmas Carol’ in Derby today. Here are their reviews:

“I was very impressed with the actors who played instruments…” Maja Kossobudzka

“I enjoyed how Scrooge’s part was played.” James Waterfield

“I enjoyed the play a lot and thought that the characters played their roles well. ” Josh Walton

Year 7s enjoyed listening to ‘Tom the Tale Teller’ re-tell folk tales from Leicester and discuss how to make stories engaging. Here are some one line reviews of the day:

“It was inspiring!” Dhilan Bhatti        “It was really interesting.” Aryan Rahman

“It was really good!” Manveer Binning   “It was amazing how he remembered it all.” Connor Lawson

What is National Poetry Day?

National Poetry Day is an annual celebration that inspires people throughout the UK to enjoy, discover and share poems. Everyone is invited to join in, whether by organising events, displays, competitions or by simply posting favourite lines of poetry on social media using #nationalpoetryday. The theme for National Poetry Day 2019 is Truth.

Share your favourite poem today!

An Arundel Tomb

Side by side, their faces blurred,
The earl and countess lie in stone,
Their proper habits vaguely shown
As jointed armour, stiffened pleat,
And that faint hint of the absurd–
The little dogs under their feet.

Such plainess of the pre-baroque
Hardly involves the eye, until
It meets his left hand gauntlet, still
Clasped empty in the other; and
One sees, with sharp tender shock,
His hand withdrawn, holding her hand.

They would not think to lie so long.
Such faithfulness in effigy
Was just a detail friends could see:
A sculptor’s sweet comissioned grace
Thrown off in helping to prolong
The Latin names around the base.

They would not guess how early in
Their supine stationary voyage
Their air would change to soundless damage,
Turn the old tenantry away;
How soon succeeding eyes begin
To look, not read. Rigidly they

Persisted, linked, through lengths and breadths
Of time. Snow fell, undated. Light
Each summer thronged the grass. A bright
Litter of birdcalls strewed the same
Bone-riddled ground. And up the paths
The endless altered people came,

Washing at their identity.
Now, helpless in the hollow of
An unarmorial age, a trough
Of smoke in slow suspended skeins
Above their scrap of history,
Only an attitude remains:

Time has transfigured them into
Untruth. The stone finality
They hardly meant has come to be
Their final blazon, and to prove
Our almost-instinct almost true:
What will survive of us is love.

By Philip Larkin

This year saw ‘Bring the Paint 2019′ bring graffiti artists from all over the world to the streets of Leicester this summer, splashing colour and talent throughout the city. Bosworth Academy would like to launch its own street art competition. This is open to to years 8 through to 11. Your brief is to make a street art style design under the theme of ’50 years of Bosworth’. You can use any medium. Alongside this you will need to submit a 50 word written piece  explaining/discussing ‘Is graffiti Art?’. Winners will have the opportunity to part take in a two day workshop led by a local graffiti artist. This will include a tour of the local graffiti as well as an opportunity to enjoy a master class in graffiti. Deadline for all entries is Thursday 10th October to the Art & Design faculty by the end of the day.

https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news/leicester-news/gallery/30-amazing-pictures-leicester-street-2909582

What is National Writing Day?

National Writing Day is an annual celebration of writing designed to inspire people across the UK to get writing. Our message is simple: everyone has a story to tell and sharing it can be a source of pleasure and power.

On 26th June 2019, we will aim to inspire creative writing on a grand scale—young people are more inclined to write creatively if they see adults around them doing so and writing can benefit people of all ages.

https://www.instagram.com/p/ByiY_fFAyER/

Everyone has a story to tell – what’s yours?

Join the conversation:

Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

#NationalWritingDay

Can you write a story in just 50 words?

Here’s the prompt to get you started, but where the story goes from there is entirely up to you.

The competition includes four categories, Adult Writers, All-age Gaelic Writers, Young Writers 5-11 and Young Writers 12-18. The entries will be judged by a panel and the four winning stories will be published on our website roughly two weeks after the closing date.

A prize will be awarded to a writer in each category:

• Adult Writers: A Writing Mug from The Literary Gift Company.
• All-age Gaelic Writers: Excellent books from The Gaelic Books Council.
• Young Writers 5-11: A fun selection of books.
• Young Writers 12-18: A Moleskine notebook for future stories.

Whether you’re a seasoned writer or you’ve always fancied picking up a pen, why not give it a go?

Need some inspiration or tips? Read our 50 Word Fiction blogs, check out Sophie Cooke’s 5 Things for Writing A Short Story and read last month’s winners.

June’s prompt

Prompt: Write a story featuring a pair of headphones

How to Enter

Entries for our June competition are currently open. Submit your story by Tuesday 25 June 2019 at noon.

• You can submit one entry to one category per month. Please read the terms and conditions carefully before entering.
• To submit your story, please complete the form below. You will receive a confirmation message on screen after submitting.
• We welcome entries in Scots or Scottish Gaelic for both categories and thank The Gaelic Books Council for their support in judging our entries.
• Please note that we no longer send acknowledgement emails and due to the large number of entries, we are not able to offer individual feedback.
• If you have any questions about the competition, please send them to: [email protected]