Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

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A $1,000 prize is given for the best unpublished manuscript by an Australian citizen under 18 years of age.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.

Awards Night

Results for the 2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award were announced at the SparkLit Awards Night on 20 August 2026. Watch the livestream here.

2026 Results

Winner

2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Hanna Pheh from Mount Waverley, Victoria, won the 2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her novel The Unintended Race.

This is what the judges had to say about The Unintended Race.

While observing her family come to faith, a young girl wrestles with questions of life, death, forgiveness and divine providence. The author skilfully evokes life in Kuala Lumpur in the 1980s and carefully respects the perspective of a child. The writing flows smoothly and uses sophisticated vocabulary and structure. A beautifully crafted novel.

An extract from The Unintended Race.

Just hours ago at dinner, Pearl and her siblings had worried that Pa wouldn’t make it.

Ma, however, hadn’t dismissed them yet. She still had something to say. And she seemed to struggle to say the words.

Finally, she simply said, “Spending will have to be cut down. The hospital fees aren’t too large, since the hospital is government-run, but the daily expenses are a lot, and Pa isn’t working.”

The truth was out. But Pearl wasn’t particularly affected by it. It didn’t matter if their family didn’t have enough money for luxuries. Anything that was necessary was enough.

As they left the bedroom, Pearl’s eyes rested on the ancestral altar, and she instantly looked away. She remembered that Pa had been planning to go to the temple in Ipoh when the accident had occurred.

So! He’d been stopped. Stopped dramatically. It was strange. Was it a
coincidence? The temple and the accident? Together!

Somehow Pearl knew that Pa had been stopped from going to the temple.

Second Prize

2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Aoife Martin from Brunswick West, Victoria, won Second Prize in the 2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her story Neither Height nor Depth.

This is what the judges had to say about Neither Height nor Depth.

Phoebe carries a letter dictated by Paul to his secretary Tertius from Corinth to Rome. What could go wrong? The author displays a good understanding of the Greco-Roman world, early church history and the Epistle to the Romans. This biblical adventure is nuanced, tense, dramatic and very moving.

An extract from Neither Height nor Depth.

“Oh Phoebe, we thought that you’d been mugged, or worse,”

“The woman hastily wrapped her arms around me before muttering, “We’re so glad you’re okay. There’s someone here to see you. He sounds important and wants you to do something for him. He wanted to wait for you to get back before explaining more. He’s in the dining room … when you’re ready.”

My eyebrows furrowed. I wasn’t totally surprised. Being a deacon, many people came to ask me to heal sick children, or seek favours or financial assistance, most of which I did, but someone of importance wasn’t usually good news.

I slipped out of my sandals, shrugged off my overcoat, and walked through the rooms. I saw some of my brothers and sisters in Christ congregating in a circle,

talking in hushed tones, but there were two people who I didn’t immediately recognise: a bald, squat man and a tall man with thinning brown hair.

Someone in the circle met my gaze, and with wide, alert eyes informed the mystery guests that I had arrived. The bald man calmly nodded, and spun around, presenting me with a face I knew well and an assertive character that turned and shook heads wherever he went.

The corners of my mouth turned up, and my tense shoulders relaxed. It was only Paul.

Third Prize

2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Steffan Sween from Chirnside Park, Victoria, won Third Prize in the 2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with his story The Night Watch.

This is what the judges had to say about The Night Watch.

A pickpocket in eighteenth century London gets more than he bargains for when he steals a Bible. This story follows the fortunes of a convict who meets Jesus, changes his ways and serves with the colonial police force under Governor Arthur Philip. The subject has been well researched, the dialogue is convincing and the development of faith is natural. “My King has other plans.” Excellent historical fiction.

An extract from The Night Watch.

Apart from the boat’s dreadful rocking, the stench on board was beyond anything I experienced in London.

On my left I saw a fella reading a book with faded pages bound in leather.

“Trying to sleep?” I joked.

“Can’t sleep with seasickness. I wanna read a chapter or two before cap’n comes down and threat’ns us to sleep.” He had a strong eastern cockney accent.

“I own … er got a similar looking book … well, kind of own.” I hesitated before deciding to take the book out of my satchel and show it to him. “You want it? It’s useless to me. Can’t make head or tails of it.”

“Why, it’s no ‘ifferent at all!” His blue eyes lit up. He turned my copy to the same page he was on and read slowly, “‘By faith, Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.’ What’s your name lad?”

“Alfie.”

“You ever ’eard about Jesus, Alfie?”

Honourable Mentions

2026 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Ezra Hahn

From the Depths of Despair

A teenage boy grieves the death of his best friend. Why did God let him die? Does it help to know that God loves the people we love even more than we do? A realistic look at loss, pain, grief and friendship.

Naomi Theos

Burdens

Cara’s parents are arguing. At school she is ostracised. She is alone with her phone and FOMO. Then a friend inexpertly introduces her to Jesus. The tale is confidently narrated in a teenage vernacular. Raw and authentic work.

Oliver Wakelin

The Restoration of Bramble the Wombat

A wombat called Bramble is infected with mange and lives as a hopeless outcast. Wedge Tail (an eagle) points Bramble to the Fountain of Life who, ultimately, gives up his life for the wombat. A successful and adorable allegory.

2025 Results

Winner

2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Hannah Leigh from Wantirna South, Victoria, won the 2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her manuscript In Bloom.

This is what the judges had to say about In Bloom.

This short story harnesses the seasons to frame the slow ebb and flow of maturation in faith. It is an original and relatable portrayal of the struggles and despair of girlhood and high school friendships, and captures the challenges facing Australian teenage Christians.

An extract from In Bloom.

I look at the clock on the wall.

Midnight.

I am officially eighteen!

My mother hugs me tightly and I smile. I listen to the flood of notifications coming from my phone. I respond to my friends’ birthday texts one by one. I tell them how much I love them. I silently thank God for all the amazing people He has placed in my life. There is nothing from Alina. My eyes fill with tears of gratitude for the friends I still have.

Later that day, I pass Alina in the school hall and smile politely, but she looks straight ahead. My eyes tingle with sadness, I continue walking. I have no regrets and my smile spreads wider. Maybe growing up means leaving some people behind.

As dusk approaches, I sit in my backyard under the vast sky, pink and purple hues surround the setting sun. I take a moment to breathe.

Although I am now an adult, I still feel like a child. The future still scares me. I am still learning to trust God. Perhaps I always will be. But as I sit here now, the person I was a year ago seems like a distant memory. I am changing. I am growing.

I look up at the sky and say a short prayer.

“God, thank you for everything you have done in my life. Thank you for your faithfulness to me even when I don’t deserve it. Help me to continue to trust you and follow you for the rest of my life.”
I open my eyes. The sun peeks through the clouds. I grin.

My story is just beginning.

Second Prize

2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Aubrey Woods from Mornington, Victoria, won Second Prize in the 2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her collection of poems Oceans and Trees.

This is what the judges had to say about Oceans and Trees.

This rich collection of imaginative, vivid and sometimes raw poems explores the experience of young women. A distinctive and versatile literary style matches the tone and gravity of the joy, the grief, the opportunities, and the uplifting hope of the gospel.

An extract from A Change In the Way I Sway.

Opportunities come like kisses
in the breeze
I want to grab one and press it to my heart
Feast on the simplicity of choice
Hide it a little longer
Just mine, not forever
My heart has strings that cross
a thousand dimensions
My choice sends ripples to those
who know me
Crashes waves on those who love me
But I am in the silent centre
Opportunity in hand and choice in heart
Tears only flow, my love pours
I have the blessing of the Highest Kin

Joint Third Prize

2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Eliza Kumnick from Rosebud, Victoria, won Joint Third Prize in the 2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her writing What a Beautiful Man He Is.

This is what the judges had to say about What a Beautiful Man He Is.

A modern writer imagines they witness the crucifixion. The writing is well paced and theological ideas are clearly articulated. The result is a solid, moving and encouraging meditation.

Joint Third Prize

2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Lisa Payne from Lakelands, Western Australia, won Joint Third Prize in the 2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her writing Hadassah.

This is what the judges had to say about Hadassah.

A compelling retelling of the story of Esther. Strong dialogue, evocative settings, humour, and knowledge of Jewish history and traditions add depth to the biblical account. Relatable and relevant historical fiction.

2024 Results

Winner

2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Evannah Stark from Nhulunbuy, Northern Territory, won the 2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her manuscript The Nightmares. The Torment. The Peace.

This is what the judges had to say about The Nightmares. The Torment. The Peace.

How should we deal with feelings of isolation and worthlessness? In this collection of short stories and poems, a young writer wrestles with the challenges and difficulties encountered in the Christian walk and teaches us to weigh the lies we tell ourselves against the truth of the gospel.

An extract from The Nightmares. The Torment. The Peace.

They are here again.

I thought it was a one-off, but lately it appears that these visits are more frequent. Shadowy fingers emerge from the gap in the door and wind their way around the door frame. Long contorted limbs stalk the walls and ceiling. I can make out their figures in the dark and watch wide-eyed as they climb over the furniture and poke at my belongings.

Their hands come up out of the floor tiles, out from under the bed. I shut my eyes. I tuck my legs up, forming a tight ball out of fear that they will grasp my ankles and drag me down with them. Drag me away from this world and all that is in it, and never let me see the light of day again. Take me down to their abode that is so easy to get into yet impossible to ever get out of. The path there is easy and wide, and they entice so many earthly beings to follow in their destructive ways, causing them to stumble and fall over the edge into a great void of fire.

I try to calm my rapid breathing. I open my eyes, and everything seems quiet. No one is here, they are gone. Sucked back into their world.

But then, I see her. Bony hands on pointed hips, her lean and gangly figure swaying slightly. Her black hair flows down her shadowed body, cascading over her shoulders and coiling around her waist. She mumbles unintelligible words in a calloused voice.

Then she shouts, stunning me with the single word she howls before vanishing completely: “Magdalene!”

The ringing in my ears grows louder. The pounding of my heart racks my entire body. She knows my name. How does she know my name?

Second Prize

2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Alvoli Anderson from Hastings, Victoria, won Second Prize in the 2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her collection of poems Reflections on Rain and Reason.

This is what the judges had to say about Reflections on Rain and Reason.

Looking for purpose, Alvoli Anderson pokes, probes and ponders history, Scripture and popular culture. Her instinct and curiosity are rewarded with some pleasing connections.

An extract from Reflections on Rain and Reason.

It’s May of Twenty-Twenty-Four
Four hundredth time hearing “What Was I Made For?”
Not once of my own accord
A subtle search for our creator

I wonder what the people thought
In May of Nineteen-Twenty-Four
Stuck between the two world wars
In a brief and blissful roar
Around the ring of history,
Repeating every century
Tracing before B-C-E,
Taking from the knowledge tree
A first abuse of opportunity
Starts a spiral called humanity
A twist that brought about gravity

It’s only now that I can see
The interwoven irony
An ignorance we’ve always known
Since what wasn’t ours to own
Fell from a branch we were supposed
To nurture, though we did not grow
And since then, all we ever learnt
Was, despite every repeated turn
And the Everything we did not earn,
To neglect the One who, not even
For a moment, thought before

He spoke “I AM“ for our “therefore”
Descartes Declares, or Billie sings
In breathy notes like that of
Which brought us into being;
Into Twenty-Twenty-Four
Still pondering this Everything
“What Was I Made For?”

Third Prize

2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Hannah Leigh from Wantirna South, Victoria, won Third Prize in the 2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her story Worlds Collide.

This is what the judges had to say about Worlds Collide.

An accident brings an unexpected friendship, betrayal, pain and shame. It also brings an opportunity for forgiveness. Is this too good to be true? Worlds Collide is a well paced drama with a refreshing resolution.

An extract from Worlds Collide.

Rachel was staring hard at the wall, trying her hardest to choke back the tears that were threatening to spill over. As she sat there, she let her thoughts take over.
The silence felt cold and sharp, like an array of needles piercing her skin repeatedly. It mocked her, all of her mistakes hanging in the air and laughing at her, telling her she was worthless. She buried her head in her hands and attempted to collect herself. There was still more she needed to say, and she struggled on although her voice was failing her, breaking on each sentence.
“I just want you to know that you’ve become a real friend to me over the last few months and I’m sorry that I’m not who you thought I was. I know I’m not a good person, but you are, and I truly hope things get better for you.”
By now there were tears streaming down her face and she exhaled shakily before sneaking a glance over her shoulder at Luna.
She had expected anger. Hurt. Betrayal. Hatred. But as Rachel looked at her, she instead saw something that she couldn’t comprehend.
Compassion.
Her eyes shining with tears,
Luna spoke three simple words.
“I forgive you.”

Watch the 2024 SparkLit Awards Night!

2023 Results

Winner

2023 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Caleb MacLaren from Victoria won the 2023 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with his screenplay The Journey.

This is what the judges had to say about The Journey:

In a modern twiston the Noah’s Ark story, this script follows four companions as they navigate an empty world devastatd by an alien attack. The plot is complex, the cahracters compelling and the dialogue natural. Neither preachy nor syrupy, the story is permeated by a subtle redemptive edge and a clear message of hope when all seems lost. When performed, this ambitious and exciting play will be a hit amongst teenagers.

An extract from The Journey

They make eye contact. Again a moment of tension. IONA is scared of this, and remembers something.

IONA

Oh yeah, I saw this, it fell out of your bag. I think it’s yours.

IONA sits up and pulls something out of her pocket: a Lego Superman keyring. It has lost an arm and is a bit roughed up. ARLO notices it, sits up and impulsively snatches it from IONA. This shocks IONA. ARLO feels bad.

ARLO

Sorry, I …

He catches himself. He decides to tell IONA about his past, something that has been hurting him.

ARLO

Continued.

It was my … our … brother’s.

IONA is intrigued. Beat.

ARLO

Continued.

Me and Max were out … when it happened. We came home to the TV still on, our … family, gone. My brother had this in his hand. 

ARLO starts tearing up and pauses.

IONA

Somewhat comforting.

What was his name?

ARLO

Isaac. Isaac was his name. He never got to live his life. He could have done so many great things!

IONA gives ARLO a hug to comfort him. IONA’s own confidence surprises her. ARLO is delighted. They pull away from the hug and sit next to each other, both facing the water. ARLO refers to the ‘S’ on the figure’s chest.

ARLO

Continued.

The ‘S’ means hope. I like to remind myself, every time I have those thoughts, every time I doubt who I’m fighting for. To have hope and faith, that this did have a purpose.

ARLO and IONA share a smile.

Second Prize

2023 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Elodie Chiha from Victoria won Second Prize in the 2023 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition The Room We Used to Sit In.

This is what the judges had to say about The Room We Used to Sit In:

How do we grieve the loss of those who have hurt us? This poem exposes the raw and confusing paradox of painful presence becoming painful absence. The Room We Used to Sit In is gritty, mature and realistic about God’s healing.

An extract from The Room We Used to Sit In

The room we would sit in is now repainted,
reconditioned
but they kept the carpet we would sit on.
Like the room, you’ve changed.
You’re more blue and spite-ridden too
but now I will live without your taboo.
If we were in a series this would be the end
but maybe it will be renewed.
Then I could still have hope knowing
when one episode ends,
another will begin
In the room we used to sit in.
Now I’ll sit in it with someone else
And hold my faith in a God that heals.
But I’ll still remember the lyrics we sang
with the windows open
and I’ll too remember every promise
that was broken.
The alcohol soaked tears,
The feuds and your beers.
I won’t forget every insult and scream
but as I pass your controller to
someone else
I’ll think of you,
and hope that one day you’ll come back
to the room we used to sit in.

Watch the 2023 SparkLit Awards Night!

2022 Results

Winner

2022 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Rachael Board from Victoria won the 2022 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition To Be Like Him.

This is what the judges had to say about To Be Like Him:

Reeling from the loss of her twin brother, Georgia wrestles with her grief … and his faith. Can Blake’s God have anything to say to her now? Georgia tells herself she’s not having a bar of it! But sometimes people say one thing and mean another. The protagonist’s internal contradictions are realistic and the story’s tone is refreshingly raw. The gradual revelation of God’s loving and life-giving presence in the aftermath of tragedy is thought-provoking and hopeful.

An extract from To Be Like Him

I walked into the kitchen to find Ophelia, my divorced and not-so-commendable mum, working a piece of dough on the counter. She smiled up at me and beckoned me over to take a seat. My steps were slow yet determined. I walked away from the picturesque white counters, olive green splashback and pot plant-infested window and followed the wooden floorboards along the hallway into my bedroom.

I sat cross-legged on my bed and let the tears run down my cheeks. Emotions were strange to feel upon my face, after weeks of blank emptiness. I let the wetness wash the cracks and plaster I had endured for so long. In that moment I let everything peel off to reveal my true self. Broken and lost. Closing my eyes, I felt myself being pulled back to warmth and love. I opened my foggy eyes and fell back onto my pillows. Staring at the ceiling, I read the quotes Blake had often said, only now I knew these were the words of his God.

“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.”

“I am your fortress.”

“Be still, and know that I am God.”

I wrapped a blanket around my feverishly shaking body and rested among the pillows. I may have been there moments, or maybe hours, but when I opened my crusty eyes, I found Ophelia laying beside me, also wrapped in my blanket. My every instinct was to scream at her face but her comfort for my pain was long overdue.

Being loved was long overdue.

Second Prize

2022 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award

Melinda Herman from Queensland won Second Prize in the 2022 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award with her composition Of War and God.

This is what the judges had to say about Of War and God:

With surprising maturity and depth, this First World War narrative processes the futility of war and suffering. The historical rigour is impressive. Sights, smells, painful memories and rich inner monologue populate a German deserter’s mind as he questions everything, but insists on a righteous God.

An extract from Of War and God

They were all victims of a man’s war, soldiers forced into spectres; haunting the scorched earth, blinded by religious untruths, and lain to rest with nothing but the promise of a love guiding them to a world free of torment, of God’s love leading them into a brighter future. 

All the actions he thought too grotesque to return from, all the horrors wrought before his eyes, he shared with his comrades, even those on the opposing side.

All of them, all the innocent souls turned impure, could find absolution.

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?

All Results

2025 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Hannah Leigh for In Bloom
Second. Aubrey Woods for Oceans and Trees
Open 2025 awards results and judges’ comments.

2024 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Evannah Stark for The Nightmares. The Torment. The Peace.
Second. Alvoli Anderson for Reflections on Rain and Reason
Open 2024 awards results and judges’ comments.

2023 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Caleb MacLaren for The Journey
Second. Elodie Chiha for The Room We Used to Sit In
Open 2023 awards results and judges’ comments.

2022 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Rachael Board for To Be Like Him
Second. Melinda Herman for Of War and God
Open 2022 awards results and judges’ comments.

2021 Australian Christian Teen Writer Award
Winner. Megan Southon for Daisies in Winter
Second. Anaya Rajaratnam for A Lesson in Murder
Third. Joel Simmonds for Evacuation Day
Open 2021 awards results and judges’ comments.

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.

Australian Christian Book of the Year

Young Australian Christian Writer Award

Australian Christian Teen Writer Award