2021 SparkLit Awards Night
You can rewatch the presentation of the 2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award:
Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
2021 SparkLit Awards Night
This year’s SparkLit Awards Night will be livestreamed on Thursday 2 September at 7:30pm (AEST). Join us for the presentation of the 2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award, as well as the Young Australian Christian Writer Award and Australian Christian Book of the Year Award.
Register now to receive the livestream link (free of charge). Prepare to be encouraged by shortlisted authors, young writers and SparkLit’s overseas project partners!
Don’t stop writing!
SparkLit encourages writing that points Australians to Jesus. The Australian Christian Teen Writer Award discovers and celebrates budding authors and creatives.
Award criteria
A $1,000 prize is given for the best unpublished manuscript by an Australian citizen under 18 years of age. Supplementary awards may be given. The winning work will explore a Christian perspective or theme and incorporate, explain or encourage Christian life and values.
Entries are judged with an eye to the:
Original nature and content of the work.
Literary style, including suitability for the target audience.
Contribution that the work makes in meeting a need for Christian writing in Australia.
Entry form and conditions
Entries for next year’s Australian Christian Teen Writer Award close on 31 May 2022.
2021 Results
Winner
2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Megan Southon from Victoria won the 2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Daisies in Winter.
This is what the judges had to say about Daisies in Winter
To escape her constant battle with crippling social anxiety, Daisy writes poetry. However, to be open to the prospect of love she must look beyond her secure and stagnant solitude. This mature and thoughtful story explores the internal dialogue of an adolescent on a courageous journey of self-acceptance. In Daisies in Winter, the struggle and the triumph is learning to reach out to God on a daily basis, even when all you can say is, “God, why am I like this?”
An extract from Daisies in Winter
She was scared. Forced into a fork in a road. Two choices. Speak, and mess everything up. Don’t speak, and mess only a lot of things up.
Don’t speak, she chose. She wished she had the ability to express herself in prose as she did in poetry. No such luck, so it was better to keep her mouth shut.
The silence wove its way into her heart, slowing its rhythm. Into her mind, quieting the voices of failure. A welcome silence. Usually silence only turned up the noise in her mind.
Jack broke the silence. The unusual, awkward safety. “I wish you’d talk.”
His words drizzled down to the bottom of her heart. No-one ever wanted her to talk, to be herself. No-one ever thought there was more to her than meets the eye. He’d seen the real Daisy, somehow, and that unlocked all the doors in her heart.
That was what allowed her to be simply Daisy for the rest of the purposefully slow walk home. She talked. He listened. He talked. She listened.
Safe. It was a different kind of safe. It was beautiful. A daisy blooming through winter.
Second Prize
2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Anaya Rajaratnam from New South Wales won Second Prize in the 2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition A Lesson in Murder.
This is what the judges had to say about A Lesson in Murder
Marlene and her detective father are hot on the trail of a murderer, but that can’t distract Marlene from more insidious forms of violence among her own classmates. This exciting, defiantly comical tale confronts the true costs and rewards of imitating Jesus and letting the cycle of hurt end with you.
An extract from A Lesson in Murder
“So you’re telling me you won’t tell me why you were pulled out of class yesterday, and yet you still get an extension for the project?” Max was incredulous.
“Yep,” Marlene replied, a hint of sass present in her voice.
“Gosh, I wish my foster dad would do that. He never comes out for any of the school events because he’s always ‘working on a case’. He doesn’t know you or any of my friends exist. He even wouldn’t let me go out on my own, or let anyone in.”
“Trust me, Max, you really don’t want to know,” she reassured hastily.
“Well, despite that, you didn’t really miss anything, except…” His eyes travelled to the back of the class, where one student was making gestures.
“What?” Marlene asked.
“She wants me to join a revolt against Garth.”
“The bully that Mario—”
“Yes, him. She wants to get him expelled.”
“She thought humiliation and being stripped of a place in the football team wasn’t enough?”
Max nodded affirmatively.
“Be like Hosea, Max. Don’t be afraid to stand for what’s right.”
Third Prize
2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Joel Simmonds from the Northern Territory won Third Prize in the 2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with his composition Evacuation Day.
This is what the judges had to say about Evacuation Day
What happens when going to church could mean losing the roof over your head? This gripping tale follows the struggle against homelessness and danger of three children in war-torn South Sudan. Evacuation Day is suspenseful, confronting and expertly placed in the Sudanese context.
An extract from Evacuation Day
Anger, like fire, it can make and break you. It makes you say reckless but honest words, and once you say them, you can’t unsay them. It all spills out, breaking those around you too.
“YOU LIED!” David screams at me, Dahlia and Luke as soon as we walk in from church.
We’re busted. Again.
“You said going to church was a one-off thing, and now you’ve gone and done it again! You are all lying Christians! get out!”
“No, not me,” I try to reason with him. Honestly, I just hope that if I stay, then I can get him to let them back in.
“I’m not a Christian, I just got dragged along for the food, I promise.”
2020 Results
Winner
2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Phoebe Worseldine from Victoria won the 2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Through Smoke and Flames.
This is what the judges had to say about Through Smoke and Flames
Will Jasmine’s trust in God’s faithfulness survive the furnace of fear and disappointment? This portrayal of a devastating bushfire through the eyes of a child is set in a convincing landscape of suspense and desperation. An encouraging and hopeful story for everyone who doubts and quails while waiting “for the wind to change”.
An extract from Through Smoke and Flames
Mick and Belinda were horrified to see a red glow light up the sky behind their property.
“Those embers must have started another fire behind us!” Mick yelled. The noise of the wind and fire was so loud they could hardly hear each other.
Flames roared across the dry paddocks, trees were alight and embers were landing everywhere. Mick was trying to put out the spot fires as they started, while Belinda kept grabbing more things from the house and throwing them down into the bunker. She felt sick and exhausted. The air was unbearably hot. She could hardly breathe.
Mick came running towards her. “Quick! We’ve got to get in the bunker now!”
Belinda took one last look. The house looked tiny against the red sky. Her heart nearly stopped beating as she watched flames lick the weatherboard walls of their home.
They hurriedly shut the bunker door behind them.
Second Prize
2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Claudia Anthony from Victoria won Second Prize in the 2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Hopefully Happy.
This is what the judges had to say about Hopefully Happy
Finley’s struggle with depression during quarantine is punctuated by a growing trust in God’s sovereignty as she reaches out to others online. The author deftly tackles the challenge of writing about a singular protagonist in a digital environment. A mature reflection on the power of writing to foster healing and forge connections.
An extract from Hopefully Happy
The change in me is not drastic, but it is immediate. I begin to notice myself feeling differently about things. Not mania, I know how that feels and this is certainly not it. This emotion is more subtle - a quiet contentment. I know I can face anything that gets thrown at me because I have an outlet. For the first time in forever, I finally have something to look forward to.
And just like that— it happens, a single moment, suspended in time that I’ll never forget. A two-toned chime which can only mean one thing: my first comment.
‘Thank you.’ It’s not much, but it’s definitely a start.
A week passes and day and night blend together like some sort of Renaissance painting where you can’t quite tell what time of day it’s meant to be.
And I write. More and more until the words are spilling out of the crevices of my mind and into actual sentences. I write about mental health and body positivity — for we are made in his image. I write about my disorder, and how to live with something you can’t change — Finley’s Top Tips for Dealing with Anxiety.
I share my faith with whoever cares to read about it. In His word I hope.
Third Prize
2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Evelyn Poyitt from New South Wales won Third Prize in the 2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Some People.
This is what the judges had to say about Some People
What impact will your life have on the world? Like the Parable of the Sower, this poem poses a gentle but clear challenge to every reader. The metaphor is well developed and delivered with balanced rhythm and meter.
An extract from Some People
People are like snowflakes.
Some fall on the cold ground,
Trampled and unnoticed,
Melting away, as if they never were.
People are like snowflakes.
Some fall yet never reach the earth, disappearing.
A makeshift cross marks the
Ice-burned hole left in someone’s heart.
People are like snowflakes.
A very few settle purposefully,
So tenderly, and soaking deeply.
A touch never to be forgotten.
People are like snowflakes.
So I wonder
Who
Are you?
2019 Results
Winner
2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Kristen Koon won the 2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Spread Your Wings, Songbird.
This is what the judges had to say about Spread Your Wings, Songbird
Lark got straight A’s at high school but struggles to make the transition to adulthood. Music becomes an avenue for progress, purpose and love. This story is hopeful and has enough latitude to engage the non-believer.
An extract from Spread Your Wings, Songbird
For the first time in my life, I was scared. My restless fingertips met the hem of my red plaid skirt.
“Next we have Lark Blakely performing a few songs on the piano.”
Grunts, accompanied by a smattering of applause jolted me back into my surroundings. I could feel beads of perspiration on the back of my neck. As I settled onto the smooth, leather seat, my eyes searched for the manager of the bar. He gave me a half-interested thumbs up. My nerves leapt when I realised how many people were in the bar.
I held my hands over the piano, willing my fingers to plonk down on the keys and play the tune I had played a million times before. Seconds passed, maybe a minute, but for me time had stopped. All I could feel was the slight quiver of my hands. All I could hear was the soft sound of my shallow breathing. Why wouldn’t my hands play what my brain was telling them to?
Defeated, I stood up. The seat flew back as I rushed off the stage straight towards the manager, mumbling apologies and that I wouldn’t need to be paid.
My cheeks burned with humiliation. I choked back tears. Whipping my coat around my shoulders, I stepped out into the wintry evening and strode away without sparing a single glance back.
Second Prize
2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Sharon Jeikishore won Second Prize in the 2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Hope in the Unseen.
This is what the judges had to say about Hope in the Unseen
Annabelle learns to trust God while coming to terms with an alien country, an acquired disability and an annoying little brother. This story is plausible, fluent and empathetic.
An extract from Hope in the Unseen
Dad sighed and sat down. “Well, I assume that you want to know what happened before you ended up here.”
I carefully swallowed and quietly said, “Yes”.
“The crocodile attacked you when you rescued William. It bit your right arm and your left leg. The doctors say you lost a lot of blood but you will be able to walk again.” Dad paused. Tears gathered in his eyes and he took a shaky breath. I realised there was something he didn’t want to tell me. “But, your hand … ” He steadied himself and continued. “You won’t be able to use your right hand again.”
My world came crashing down. I was numb. The only stable thing in my world, the only connection to my mother was severed. Art was no longer a part of me. I was crushed. Internally screaming. My mind a jumbled mess. I was lost. I couldn’t see the meaning of anything anymore.
It took weeks to get out of hospital, and months to start walking again. I was confined to bed until my body was capable of performing normal functions again.
A verse caught my eye. Jeremiah 29:11. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” I scoffed. Hope was something I lost the day I lost the use of my hand.
There was no way a God who cared would have let me lose my right hand.
Third Prize
2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Lwendyl Anderson won Third Prize in the 2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition The Days and the Years.
This is what the judges had to say about The Days and the Years
A daughter of an asylum-seeker in detention struggles with the effects of separation from her father. The use of poetry to express emotion and prose to tell the story is effective. The writing is personal and haunting and the author displays a profound understanding of the way memory works.
An extract from The Days and the Years
As court case after court case came to a disappointing ending, as more and more refugees found themselves deported, they found themselves losing hope.
He stayed, for four more years, working one job and then another, overworked and underpaid, paying high rent for cramped, dirty and depressing lodgings.
He stayed and he saved and he sent home gifts: boxes so big he could have fit half of himself inside, which, in a way, was his aim. He lovingly packed the boxes with chocolates and toys for his daughter, jewellery and crockery and clothes for his wife. Over land and over sea the boxes would travel, passing through so many pairs of hands to arrive at the doorstep he used to know so well. And from that doorstep they would call him, and thank him for each gift. Gently unpacking each item he had packed weeks before was the closest they came to touching one another.
And it seemed to the girl that her father was fading away, and no matter how hard she tried to remember him, the distance between them was growing ever wider. How could a father stay away for so long?
In a lonely home
as the sounds and smells of frying roti filled the air,
a comforting replacement for the sun which was nowhere,
a mother and daughter offered up their prayer.
Together at the table
to the Lord they gave their plea:
“Let the third of our three
pass his journey safely over land and over sea.”
All Results
2020 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Phoebe Worseldine for Through Smoke and Flames
Second Prize. Claudia Anthony for Hopefully Happy
Third Prize. Evelyn Poyitt for Some People
Open 2020 awards results and judges’ comments.
2019 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Kristen Koon for Spread Your Wings, Songbird
Second Prize. Sharon Jeikishore for Hope in the Unseen
Third Prize. Lwendyl Anderson for The days and the Years
Open 2019 awards results and judges’ comments.
2018 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Jessica Dinning for The Mirror
Second Prize. Abigail Hewagama for Bella’s Story
Third Prize. Sharon Jeikishore for Impossible Made Possible
Open 2018 awards results and judges’ comments.
2017 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Tanya Strydom for ‘Sir Tain and the Peasant’s Sword’
Second Prize. Caylie Ellen Moore for Tethered
Third Prize. Jessica Dinning for Deserted
Open 2017 awards results and judges’ comments.
2016 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Annie-Jo Vogler for ‘All the Ways We Are’
Second Prize. Elizabeth Stinton for Meeting
Third Prize. Obed Wallis for Bellum Ex Animo
Open 2016 awards results and judges’ comments.
2015 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
The award was withheld in 2015.
Open 2015 awards results and judges’ comments.
2014 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Annie-Jo Vogler for Ellesmere Road
Open 2014 awards results and judges’ comments.
2013 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Alex Chi for Hello God … It’s Me
Second Prize. Caroline Dehn for Stage Left
Open 2013 awards results and judges’ comments.
2012 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Daniel Li for A Short Walk
Second Prize. Amber Holmes for The Mask
Open 2012 awards results and judges’ comments.
2011 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Amber Holmes for Sunshine
Second Prize. Christy Tobeck for Who are you anyway?
Open 2011 awards results and judges’ comments.
2010 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Sarah Longden for Choices
Open 2010 awards results and judges’ comments.
