BBC Young Writers’ Award Shortlist announced!

'Bloodshed in Rafah’ by Eloise Barrett, 17, from Birmingham.

Described by the judges as ‘heartwrenching,’ ‘original’ and nuanced,’ ‘Bloodshed in Rafah’ is a deeply emotional story that highlights the reality of a childhood impacted by war. A young girl, living in a refugee camp in Rafah explores feelings of shame and confusion as her first period arrives. Her mother has just died, and with no women for support, and no time to grieve, she must rely on her father and brothers. Told from a child’s perspective, a narrative choice inspired by the Studio Ghibli film ‘Grave of the Fireflies,’ falling bombs are portrayed not as terrifying explosions but as shooting stars, a juxtaposition that brings the atrocities of war into sharp focus.

‘Lethe’ by Solly Day-Stokoe, 18, from Dartmouth, Devon.

Praised by the judges for its experimental use of language, this ‘refreshing’ and ambitious sci-fi story is told from the perspective of a spaceship tasked with transporting over three-thousand humans to an unknown destination. As asteroids collide with the ship, it recalculates and recalibrates the systems it needs to survive, until faced with the ultimate sacrifice; a loss of self. Considering the relationship between memory and identity, Solly wrote ‘Lethe’ as an allegory for Dementia as he reflected on his great-aunt’s experience of the condition with the title referencing Greek mythology and the river in the underworld that washes away memories.

‘The Day the Red Ran Away’ by Siddhi Garg, 14, from Royal Hillsborough, Co. Down.

From the youngest writer in the competition, age just 14 years old, ‘The Day the Red Ran Away’ is a story about a childhood stolen by conflict, and the hope and the bravery of creative acts. The story is told from the perspective of a young boy whose unnamed city has been destroyed by war, with the dust of collapsed buildings erasing the colour of the landscape to grey. Using his paintbox, the boy paints spots of colours in hidden places across the neighbourhood, and when an airstrike hits and he loses his paints, he closes his eyes and imagines colourful scenes in his head. Described by the judges as a ‘work of art’ in itself, Siddhi wanted to ‘write a story that made the reader want to beam and cry at the same time’.

‘Funny’ by Tom Ixer, 15, from Sherborne, Dorset

‘Funny’ explores the dark side of being the class clown and how often humour can hide a desire for connection and friendship. A young boy uses jokes and pranks to help himself cope with losing his dad, and to make his classmates laugh, but when his jokes go too far, the consequences are tragic. The judges admired the mature tackling of themes of peer pressure and psychological bullying alongside the story’s ‘unique voice’ and originality, with Tom’s interest in screenwriting lending a cinematic quality to his writing.

‘The Pillbox’ by Nathan Karby, 16, from Calne, Wiltshire

Described by the judges as a ‘tremendous’ story, ‘The Pillbox’ explores cognitive dissonance and the tension between national and family pride, drawing partly on Nathan’s experience as an MOD child who has lived a peripatetic existence. When two teenagers discover an old World War II guard post, they are prompted to confront the reality of war. One of them, reflecting on their dad’s career in the military, struggles to unite feelings of pride for their father’s bravery with a moral opposition to conflict. The name and gender of the teenager is deliberately not referenced as Nathan wanted to highlight that in modern times, it is not just men who serve in the army.