Photo Courtesy EverythingGP Staff

By Tanner Smith

Art & Culture

GPPL selected 35th Annual Collins Writing Contest-winning authors

Apr 20, 2023 | 1:18 PM

The winners of the 35th Annual Collins Writing Contest have been announced by the Grande Prairie Public Library.

With this year’s theme set as “Scared Silly”, the GPPL received 222 entries for five age groups, ranging from Grade 1 to Adults.

Bailey Randolph, Head of Children Services at the GPPL said in a release, “Each author interpreted the theme slightly differently than the next, leaving us with a variety of unique and exciting stories.”

Out of the five categories, three winners were selected along with a couple of honorable mentions:

Grades 1 – 3

Meaningful Mementos

Remembering Someone You've Lost at Christmas

Dec 03, 2024

Seasonal Sorrow

How Do You Get Through The Holidays When You're Grieving?

Nov 01, 2024

Upcoming Events at Oliver's

Grief & Loss and Estate Planning Seminars

Oct 02, 2024

• First: Back in Time by Alexander Wong.
• Second: The Rise of The Green Moon by Corbin Jones-Wilmot.
• Third: Space Adventures by Kai Thiessen.

Grades 4 – 6

• First: The Haunted Robot Dinosaurs by Easton Cowan.
• Second: The Mysterious Cloak by Lucas Armstrong.
• Third: Who Are You? by Delaney Wiens.

Honourable Mention: The Paranormal Puppy by Brady Gault.

Honourable Mention: Stranded by Dahlia Adewunmi.

Honourable Mention: Simon Fling by Esther Hube.

Grades 7 – 9

• First: Bleach by Addison Mah
• Second: Amelia Thompson’s Terrifying Journey by Carys Buhler
• Third: Planes by Imogen Hudyma-Yungwirth

Grades 10 – 12

• First: The Ballad of King Rabadath by Hannah Wiens
• Second: Shrimply Having a Good Time by Erinn Kerr
• Third: The Vanilla Man by Zachary Jickling

Honourable Mention: Draft Saved by Luhita Sharma

Adult

• First: The Odd Duck by Sherrie Bouchard
• Second: The Price of Beauty by Hailey McCullough
• Third: The Mistake by Ore Maxwell

Honourable Mention: Captive Play by Brandie Angela Lee

A celebration and award ceremony for the winners is set to take place on Saturday, June 17, at 2:00 p.m. in the Rotary Community room at the library. The public is welcome to attend.

The contest has been around since 1988, thanks to the generosity of Clem and Muriel Collins. It is open to all ages from Grade 1 students to Adults, with a range of categories for writers to submit their work.

Randolph, said in the same release, ” Clem & Muriel Collins were very involved in the community, and had a particular passion for education and the arts. We are very thankful that we have been able to keep this contest running every year in their honour.”